Bayambang’s Culinary Landscape

 Bayambang’s Culinary Landscape

 by Resty S. Odon and Bayambang Culture Mapping Project writers

 

Lying in the southern central part of Pangasinan province, Bayambang might be called a crossroads town. Being geographically at the tip means it is a natural doorway to the province and to the rest of Region I (Ilocandia) and conversely a busy exit point toward the vast fertile plains of Central Luzon. It is therefore inevitable that, while Bayambang's central location makes it a part of the heartland of Pangasinan culture, it is also most prone to outside influences.

Its current demographic can only reflect this reality, as the local culture resulted into an amalgam of influences – from Ilocanos, Tagalogs, Pampangos, and other ethnic groups.

It is thus only logical that, viewed from the perspective of the vastly diverse nature of Philippine cuisine, Bayambangueño cuisine would be mostly a combination of Pangasinan and Ilocano dishes together with the rest of the major foreign influences in Filipino cuisine (Spanish, Chinese, American, etc.).


Traditional dishes that are considered to be definitively Bayambangueño are characterized by being organic and healthy without being consciously seen as such (albeit with the exception of the sodium- and sugar-laden items). Apart from that, the resulting flavor profile is quite hard to pin down precisely because the local cuisine is a complex combination of influences, like in all other Philippine towns. But there is no dearth of unique features here and there.

Soups/Congee

The use of unripe saba banana is a quaint feature of local cooking. Out of this, kinurkor a ponti is made, a soupy vegetable dish made of spoon-grated near-ripe saba topped with malunggay or ampalaya leaves and, optionally, fried or grilled fish (bangus or tilapia).

Binolbol with fried tokwa and other fried toppings is just the usual lugaw or congee (bolbol in Pangasinan means boil), but locals are especially fond of it that stalls make brisk sales out of it.

Corn soup with ampalaya leaves is also a distinctive preference here.

Salads

Utong na kamote salad is camote tops with raw tomatoes and onions in kalamonding (calamansi) and bagoong agamang (shrimp bagoong) or bagoong monamon (anchovy bagoong).

Inkelnat a katuray with kamatis and agamang is blanched caturay flower salad with fresh tomatoes drizzled with sauteed bagoong alamang.

Vegetable dishes

Pakbet or pinakbet (literally meaning shriveled), of course, is a comfort food, but the round talon (eggplants) and little palya (ampalaya) varieties are the variants much preferred to be used in these parts.

Bulanglang here is what Tagalogs mistakenly call pinakbet: sauteed kalabasa (squash), okra, ampalaya, eggplant, and agayep (sitaw or string bean) -- sometimes including gabey or winged abean -- with little pork slices as sambong (sahog in Tagalog). It is sometimes cooked in gata (coconut milk) with dilis (dried anchovies).

Utong na sitaw (stringbean shoots) is topped on vegetable dishes. The shoots have a delicate nutty flavor and a pleasantly rough consistency -- a treat one won't find in other vegetable shoots -- it's a wonder why it is not popular in the rest of the country. Coming close to preference is the use of utong na kalabasa or squash shoots.

Saluyot tan labong a sinagsagan is saluyot and bamboo shoots stewed and seasoned with bagoong. Saluyot may also be stewed in a peres (local word for souring agent, pronounced as /pə-rəs'/) of calamansi or salomagi (sampaloc).

The use of bunga'y marunggay or malunggay pods in vegetable dishes is another defining element of the local cuisine, a turnoff to outsiders due to its strong pharmaceutical taste. Oftentimes, they are topped on pinakbet. Sometimes, malunggay pods are cooked as the main ingredient, usually as buridibud, i.e., with camote then topped with fried bangus or pork.

Ginisan papait is sauteed sekan in lots of tomatoes then usually flavored with bagoong alamang.

Ginisan kamatis with egg attests to the presence of tomato farms among other vegetable farms here. The cuatro cantos variety of tomatoes is much preferred here.

In our version of ginisan balatong (guinisang munggo), ginger is added -- a turn-off to outsiders, but for some reason, a necessity to locals. White beans and black beans are also regular fare, sauteed in onion and tomatoes then stewed with pork then topped with ampalaya leaves.

Ginisan apayas with utong na kamote tan priton bangus is green papaya sauteed with camote tops and then stewed with fried milkfish. It may look deceptively bland but is definitely tasty while being healthy. Green papaya is also cooked with coconut milk but often in combination with kamansi and dilis or tinapa flakes.

The use of other edible flowers such as burak (squash flowers) and baeg or himbabao (a local amaranth species) flowers is another highlight of local cuisine. When in season, the sabsabirukong vine flower is often topped on ginisan balatong or other vegetable dishes. Old-timers say even the kukuwatit (kakawati) flowers used to be eaten here.

Pising ya inangel is assorted lowland vegetables stewed in ginger and salt, like the inabraw, dinengdeng, and dinoydoy of Ilocanos or the laswa or law-uy of Ilonggos and Cebuanos. It is often topped with grilled fish such as inkalot a bangus. The use of a short variety of sitaw, called agayep a tandereg, cooked this way is another interesting dish, as the sitaw variety gives a subtle difference in flavor. The simple and soupy vegetable dish may be sinagsagan or seasoned with the "funky-smelling" (as outsiders put it) fish bagoong, but with the bones strained.

Ginataan ya kamansi or langka or ginisa tan sinabawan ya kamansi or langka also makes a significant frequency of appearance in turo-turos and dining tables.

Meat dishes

Locals cook all of the meat dishes popular with the rest of Filipinos, from the traditional Sunday fare (chicken or pork adobo, tinolang manok, sinigang na baboy, etc.) to fiesta fare (mechado, embotido, morcon, pinaupong manok, spare ribs, etc.). But certain dishes have slight differences. The most popular are the following:

The local dinuguan is called bagisen (or baguisen), as in the rest of Pangasinan. Here, it uses kamias as souring agent. The intestines are washed with detergent then boiled in guava leaves to get rid of the fetid smell. According to Mayor's Action Center head Jocelyn Santos Espejo, in their barangay, Inirangan, they include upo slices in their baguisen.

 

Lauya (nilagang baka or nilagang pata ng baboy) has a thin broth, unlike the rich broth of pochero. It is eaten with rice, of course, but the secret to enjoying this dish fully is this indispensable seasoning on the side: patis with kalamansi.

During fiestas, the fatty part of pork is cooked adobo-style in pineapple.

Other favorites are goat meat caldereta, pinapaitan a kanding, and igado. Certain folk love to eat dog meat by cooking azucena.

Fish and seafood dishes

Malangsi or freshwater fish produce is king in Bayambang cuisine, thanks to the late lamented legacy of Mangabul Lake at the southern part of town. That is why the town has an official festival named after it, the annual "Malangsi Fish-tival," one of the highlights of the town fiesta. (Malangsi has another, negative meaning: fishy or funky. Interestingly, the local word for ulam or the day's viand is sira, which literally means fish, even though the day's viand is meat.

To outsiders, especially in Pangasinan, the town is synonymous to the fish buro. It is salt-cured tilapia, dalag, or gourami with steamed rice and bamboo shoots. It is typically sauteed with lots of garlic, onions, and tomatoes until the edges turn crunchy. The more daring ones like to have ginataang buro with sili, or buro cooked in coconut milk and bird chilis up until the curdling point.

Inselar a karpa or karpeta is carp or little carp sinigang, while inselar a pantat is catfish sinigang. The catfish slime is removed by thoroughly rubbing salt or wood ash on the skin of the fish.

These freshwater fishes are cooked in novel ways, as in potseron dalag, or mudfish cooked pochero style and whatever style to suit the individual's taste: curry, kare-kare, patatim, sweet and sour, lumpiang shanghai, and so on.

Inselar a sira (like tilapia) may be cooked using sliced unripe pontin seba (saba) and pias (kamias), and the result is interestingly acrid. Other souring agents frequently used include guava and santol fruits and tamarind shoots.

Other species traditionally consumed here are alalo, ayungin, and bunor.

Bayambang is, of course, the home of the world's longest barbecue. The people are simply crazy about ingkalot a sira or grilled fish. It is typically hito, tilapia, or Bonuan bangus grilled with chopped tomatoes, onions and spices stuffed in the fish belly. It is best dipped in kabelew with inasin (anchovy bagoong) or padas.

Ginataan a alireg is a local species of snail cooked in coconut milk. When the kuhol arrived, cooking it in coconut milk also quickly became popular.

Another traditional favorite is ginataan a larangan, though the black cone snails are most likely sourced from the neighboring town of Mangatarem with its unpolluted rivulets.

The use of kuros (bukto?) or sun-dried small river? shrimps (not shelled like hibe) is another feature of the local cuisine.

Townsfolk also traditionally eat a great variety of saltwater produce or seafoods, the town being near seafood-producing towns. The favorite, unsurprisingly, is bangus or milkfish, but not just any milkfish but the famed Bonuan variety raised in Dagupan City, and it is cooked in dazzlingly different ways, from adobo to daing to prito to kinilaw and relleno. The public market used to be filled with a dazzling variety of seafood on a given day, from galunggong, matambaka, tamban, pingka (espada), malaga, asohos, basasong, dorado, tanigue, dalagang bukid, to seaweeds like ar-arusip, from squid and crabs to snails and clams of different kinds.

Tuyo, particularly of the prime quality we call lapad, and tinapa (smoked galunggong) are, of course, common breakfast fare.

Kakanin

The local kakanin are collectively called kanen, with the 'e' pronounced with the notorious Pangasinic schwa sound /ə/. In Brgy. Ligue, entire neighborhoods have relied on kanen-making as their livelihood for generations.

Inlubi is rice cake made of blackened young rice, sugar and coconut milk. It is traditionally prepared to mark All Souls' Day and aptly described as having a "toasty" taste and "smelling like fresh morning air." A soupy variant with young coconut slivers is called ginataan ya deremen, and one topped with latik is called latik ya deremen.

 

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Kundandit is a pounded corn cake version that is different from the one being made in Manaoag: it has a lot more cassava and thus has a different taste and consistency.

Manufactured in Brgy. Amanperez is gipang, crunchy yet chewy blocks of blackened rice, a cross between pinipig and pop/puffed rice. When crushed, the resulting rice crispies are often sprinkled on halo-halo.

Latik generally means caramelized sugarcane with coconut milk reduction, but in Bayambang and other parts of Pangasinan, it means biko topped generously with caramelized sugarcane and coconut milk reduction. This is often called bibingka in other parts of the country, but never referred to like that here, for bibingka means something else. Locals who make latik make the best latik ever, but they are quite hard to find.

 

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Latik ya kahoy or latik a kahoy is cassava cake that is reportedly cooked like bibingka, i.e., grilled with glowing charcoals placed on top of a tin pan, thus explaining the epidermal caramelization, so it may be called bibingkang kahoy as well. It is surprisingly delicious and soft, almost like oven-baked cassava pudding, but a tad harder than cassava cake, which is steamed.

Inkaldit used to be common. It is what patupat is called in Pangasinan, particularly in our town.

Inkiwal is a simpler version of biko -- just white glutinous rice cooked in coconut milk and white or brown sugar made fragrant with anise. It may have no topping or may be topped with ganusal or coconut milk reduction. If its bottom is toasted and only salt is used as flavoring, it is called inangit,  Inkiwal comes from the Pangasinan root verb kiwal, meaning constant stirring. These are popular atang or ritual food offering to ancestral spirits or other unseen spirits.

Tapong is a rice cake with a browned top and looks more like a compact kind of puto or bibingka made of ground non-glutinous rice. "Tapong" originally means "powder" in Pangasinan, so the name must refer to the powdered rice as main ingredient. (In neighboring San Carlos City, the term is used to refer to tikoy which is also called pininat.)

 

Puton belas  (or puton lasong, with lasong referring to the giant clay pan it is steamed in) is a bilao-sized steamed puto that is sliced rhomboidally in pieces and topped with margarine or butter and a dash of grated coconut. It is best eaten steaming hot. Another puto made of ground non-glutinous rice is toasted on the top, making it a cross between puto and bibingka.

Other favorites are bibingka, which is traditionally made and sold only after Simbang Gabi or Christmas dawn mass, tambo-tambong (bilo-bilo or guinatan), unda-unday (palitaw), and bitso-bitso (carioca with young coconut strips inside). These should be done perfectly or they will be met with severe criticism.

One thing that is noticeably missing is kulambo, a cross between tikoy and the thick sauce of tambo-tambong.

Other snacks

Alcohol-tinged sweet binuburan (rice with sugar fermented with bubor or yeast) is typically made at home or sold in the public wet market, and it is meant to be eaten first thing in the morning, reputedly as protection against stomachache.

Simplicity is the name of the game, as boiled snacks (inlambong, with only a dash of salt) are much preferred among local households: apuler, tuge, sago, mani, mais, saba, and kahoy or kamoteng kahoy. Inlambong a kahoy is eaten hot with margarine or butter, sprinkled white/brown sugar, and grated coconut.

Ingkalot a mais (grilled corn) and lakamas (singkamas, turnip) take up the runners-up spot in the hearts of local snackers. Inkalot a mais is grilled corn on the cob, often buttered, but using the white glutinous 'native' variety called Silangan, which has gone missing of late, which is sad, because it has a distinct aroma and taste.

 

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Today, a purple-speckled corn variety is the preference when it comes to boiled corn on the cob.

New arrivals on the scene include potato onion twist, a soft, crunchy, and addicting onion-infused potato crackers, and rice crackers, which look like fish cracker, but actually contain only rice and seasonings, invented in Brgy. Sancagulis. Somebody also sells a maruya made of buko strips.

Juices

Fresh buri sap traditionally drunk as 'juice' is called sinamit.

Green mango juice and buko 'juice' (coco 'water') are, of course, popular.

Fruits

A favorite item to round out a typical meal is a slice of sweet ripe mango, preferably the kalabaw or pico variety. Green to yellowish Indian mango and apple mango come second, but as snacks, not dessert. Green Indian mango is often slathered with sauteed agamang (bagoong alamang).

The next favorite would be lacatan and latundan bananas. Alternative banana varieties include ebeb (green, sourish one), seba (saba or Cardaba), and San Juan (saba with seeds).

A great variety of fruits is consumed besides the above.

In the old days, American influences such as apple (fragrant Washington apples, China apple, and sour green apple), mandarin orange, navel orange, purple grapes, and pear strictly appear only during the Christmas season. There was no Fuji apple yet.

Condiments

If not the main dish, buro may be also used as side dish or a relish. It goes well with fried fish and pork chop, steamed vegetables, and even pakbet, but one has to acquire the taste in the first place.

Mulantong is a variant of buro using smaller freshwater fish: a young gourami variety called siringan, called as such because it has a siring, literally "facial mark."


Green mango and kamias were also salt-cured as buron mangga and buron pias.

 

We are very particular with our bagoong. It has to be inasin a monamon or anchovy bagoong from a certain place in Lingayen called Manibo, used as dip with calamansi or, better yet, kabelew as peres.

Agamang with kalamansi and patis with calamansi are also very popular dips for fried fish.

Appetizer

The use of grated green mango mixed with mackerel sardines is popular because the pairing is perfectly contrapuntal to anyone who acquires the taste.

Spread

Used as bread filling is coco jam or katiba.

Beverage

Rice 'coffee' with red sugar or with red sugar and milk is a logical result of being a rice-producing town.

Exotic dishes

The daring ones among us cook and eat the following items that are most likely Ilocano influences: patang (frogs), ararawan or dalukdok (mole cricket) and kuryat (cricket) sauteed in their own oil and sliced kamias after removing the wings, heads and innards. The even more daring ones reportedly eat sisimot (winged termites) and duron (locust) as well.

On a final note, it is interesting how certain indigenous herbs are being mostly shunned by locals, thinking these are inedible weeds: pansit-pansitan, ngalub (pigweed, a portulaca species), etc.

Latest developments: The availability of regional food and influence of globalization

The advent of mall culture, fastfood franchises, and the convenience store in this town has brought in an avalanche of new food ingredients and items that is sure to change the local foodways. The shopper still can't readily find a lot of items, but there are often random surprises in the town’s groceries and malls if one is in the right place at the right time.

Outside the mall and supermarkets, there are the recent bakeries, cafés and restaurants which offer novel stuff. At a market stall, one can find Vigan empanada, shredded green papaya and all. A neighbor once gave a sourish but creamy banana variety mistakenly called señorita but is actually something else and another variety like saba but with an interesting appendage at the tip and has an ampasager or mapakla (acrid) edge: a plantain variety. 'Imports' from nearby places like the piga-pigar and kaleskes of Dagupan City have become popular of late as well.

These are proofs of changing and expanding local tastes and the presence of consumers exposed to regional and global cuisines, not to mention the pervasive influence of mass media, especially social media. Most likely these consumers are returning OFWs (overseas Filipino workers), migrants, and families out of intermarriages. This is a far cry from the time when locals did not even know what alugbati is, how to eat itlog na maalat (salted egg) with onion and tomatoes, let alone century egg, and so on.

Finally, another significant development is the presence of Muslim vendors, mosques, and the sound of imams singing incantations at the break of dawn. Who knows how this is poised to influence the local food culture in the future?

Thoroughly unapologetic despite its oftentimes extreme 'fear factor' -- with puzzling lack of desire to impress or convert the outsider -- a 'take it or leave it' attitude, in other words: That's Bayambangueño and Pangasinan-Ilocano cuisine.

Meanwhile, the following are some of the most distinctive items of local cuisine:

 

Gipang

 

 

 

Gipang is a dark, crunchy, and sweet treat that reportedly originated in Brgy. Amanperez, this town. Part-pinipig and part-pop rice, it comes in a brick shape and sold in separate plastic bags in the market.

 

According to the residents there, they have been making gipang since they were young, and that the tradition of making gipang goes back to their ancestors. According to their own estimate, commercial production started in the 1950s-1960s, when all households in the barrio produced or cooked gipang.

 

In Rosita Manlongat de Vera's makeshift production area, it can be seen that gipang is essentially made of deremen, the glutinous rice that is toasted at immature stage and blackened with charcoal, giving it a smoky flavor, and traditionally used on All Saints' Day to make a rice cake called inlubi, which is cooked in honor of the dearly departed.

 

To make gipang, she said, the deremen is made into binotang deremen, deremen that is puffed a bit by frying it in oil with molten molasses on an arms-length flatbed steel fryer and, once done, the whole thing is quickly partitioned into blocks and hauled off. Timing is reportedly important, so as to achieve the desired degree of doneness. The result is an interesting combination of flavors and consistency: chewy, crunchy, smoky and sweet at the same time. Like pinipig, though not flattened into flakes, this greenish-gray treat is often used as topping in halo-halo or eaten as is.

 

It is also being sold outside of the town.

 

 

Local Version of Pakbet

 

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Pakbet or pinakbet (pi/nak/’bət) is, without a doubt, the Pangasinense's comfort food. It has that peculiar blend of flavors that Ilocanos and Pangasinenses love, even though it comes off as a strange melange to the uninitiated: salty, sour, bitter, slightly sweet, grassy/herbal, creamy, and full of umami.

 

This humble dish is easy to make. With it served in the most ordinary days, cravings for the familiar flavors of home are satisfied in every bite without being cloying.

 

The local version uses a recipe with this particular set of preferences: Eggplants are preferably the pale-colored, bulb-shaped variety (balbalosa). The ampalaya (bitter melon/gourd) is the dwarf, a lot more bitter variety. Tomatoes are preferably the pumpkin-looking one called tres cantos. Onion is preferably lasuna (shallot) and garlic preferably the small variety grown in Ilocos.

 

Locals are very particular with the bagoong. It has to be the dark reddish-brown, salt-cured anchovy-based variety from Lingayen (bagoong/inasin a monamon).

 

Ginger, crushed, is also indispensable.

 

The optional ingredients are green pepper (the long green sili/finger chili), topped; bagnet, lechon kawali, roasted or fried fish, or parboiled pork with a generous portion of fat, also topped.

 

Vegetable oil is used if the sautéing step is preferred.

 

The older generation preferred squeezing everything together inside a clay pot (sayap, palayok) -- the harder ingredients first, then the easy-cooking ones at the top -- and then, using firewood, boil everything together with bagoong until it turns into an almost amorphous blob of green, red, and various shades of brown.

 

Some prefer sauteing the pre-boiled meat, onion, garlic, tomatoes, and the other vegetables first, then drowning the whole thing with water, but purists frown upon this step. They prefer plain boiling with just a little water until the broth is brought to near reduction and the vegetables get shrunk in size, for this is where the term pakbet or pinakbet comes from: the original word pinakubet (Pangasinan) means "shrunk" or "shriveled." The sayap is carefully shaken (isintak) to make sure the vegetables are mixed at the desired degree, i.e., without crushing the vegetables. Mixing the dish with a ladle supposedly turns the ampalaya overly bitter.

 

Oftentimes, the tomatoes are added in later after the pot is brought to a boil or the eggplants will not reach the desired stage of wilting.

 

A crucial step in cooking pinakbet is the addition of bagoong. Separately in a deep bowl, about two tablespoons of bagoong monamon are diluted with some of the boiling stock, stirred until the bits of bagoong fish (anchovies) are dissolved, then poured into the pot, with the fish bones strained using the sapitan (strainer). This step is called panag-sagsag (sagsagan, sinagsagan), with sagsag as the root word, referring to the use of bagoong as flavor-enhancing agent.

 

Other optional vegetable ingredients include cubed camote (sweet potato, preferably yellow variety, for use as salt buffer and to lend some sweetness), okra, saluyot, patani seeds (to lend a particular fragrance), segmented malunggay pods, and winged beans or sigarilyas. Cabbage wedges also work nicely.

 

Leftover adobo would be a good substitute for bagnet as sambong or sahog (a term used to refer to the main protein ingredient that enhances the flavor of the dish). If there is none, boiled pork cuts or pre-fried bangus will do, or even chicharron (pork cracklings). Shrimps may also be used as sambong.

 

Served a bit overcooked, pakbet is eaten with a steaming mound of rice. Pinakbet tastes even better with sauteed fish buro as side dish.

 

Kalabasa (squash) and sitaw are often the 'deal-breaker' in this recipe, for once these are added, and the bagoong used is bagoong alamang (shrimp paste), the dish is no longer called pinakbet but bulanglang, which is even more open to additional ingredients (patola, sitaw tops, etc.).

 

 

Ingisan Papait

 

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Papait (Mollugo oppositifolia) is a most bitter herb that grows wild and thus is often considered as weed. Having gained enough market recently, it is now being farmed in places where the soil is silty like Camiling, but it is traditionally uprooted whole in the katakelan (woods) and alog and taew (farms and even untended open grounds), where other edible weeds like baeg (alukon, himbabao, birch flower), kulitis (amaranth), pansit-pansitan (peperomia), ngalub (purslane, pigweed, olasiman), tulango (?), sabsabitan (thorny kind of amaranth), and saluyot (jute) grow wild.

 

To those who have developed the appetite for its shocking bitterness, it is a much sought-after delicacy. Papait is quickly sautéed in tomatoes, agamang (shrimp paste or bagoong alamang), onions, and garlic, and as an optional ingredient, deep-fried pork bits. No water is added after sauteing, because the vapor from all the ingredients will be enough to wilt the leaves for a few additional minutes.

 

Overcooking will bring disaster, as the leaves turn mushy and even taste overly bitter, depending on whether the cook is makaluto (can cook bitter ingredients without coming up with an overly bitter dish) or not.

 

Sauteed papait is best paired off with other dishes that contrast with the stark bitterness like fried fish or fried pork.

 

Locally, the only rival of papait in bitterness are a badly cooked ampalaya (whether leaves or fruit) and a tea made from the so-called pait grass or serpentina (king of bitters herb).

 

Papait is called sekan and maligoso in Tagalog, but it is not as popular as vegetable outside Pangasinan and Ilocos, just like other locally common fare but largely uncommon elsewhere like katuray flowers, baeg flowers, white beans, utong na agayep (sitaw shoots), burak (squash flower), the seasonal sabsabirukong, malunggay pods, balangabang flowers (local Bauhinia species with little white blooms, not the pink, orchid-like species) and shoots (as souring agent and salad ingredient), and unripe saba.

 

 

Latik

 

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The rice cake recipe called latik is widely known in the entire Pangasinan province, and the version described here is the one preferred in Bayambang.

 

Latik is a kind of rice cake that is made from ansakket (malagkit or glutinous rice), gata (coconut milk), and sinakob (coconut sugar), with the last ingredient being used for its characteristic red-black sweet-smoky topping (called latik, thus the name). This extremely sweet topping with a smoky, bitter note is what characterizes it from other rice cake varieties that are popularly called biko in the rest of the country.

 

It must be noted that, outside Pangasinan, the term latik is restricted to the topping (coconut sugar reduction), whereas in Pangasinan, the term refers to the entire rice cake. Other places outside Pangsinan call this delicacy bibingka. Moreover -- in Luzon, at least -- the word latik is also used to refer to the golden brown curds (coconut milk reduction) that result from slow-cooking coconut milk over medium fire and used as toppings in Filipino desserts such as biko and tibok-tibok. In Pangasinan, latik used in this sense is called ganusal.

 

Latik rice cake is one of the most popular delicacies in Pangasinan, specifically in Bayambang, because of its distinct aroma and delicious taste, particularly its thick, indescribably chewy, and glistening consistency when done right. Latik is often served during occasions like birthdays, anniversaries, Christmas and New Year. It is also sold in the market and given away as pasalubong (take-home gift).

 

Traditionally, this delicacy is cooked using an earthenware called latikan. The top of the latik is cooked with coals first before the bottom part is cooked. It is never the other way around, or else the katiba (thick coconut syrup) will seep into the glutinous rice (malagkit) instead of curdling or caramelizing on top.

 

Making latik is not easy, for the process, as detailed below, is quite lengthy.

 

Ingredients

 

• 2 kilos of glutinous rice (malagkit)

• 1 sinakob (coconut sugar disc) or 1 ¼ kilo brown sugar

• 12 cups of coconut milk (gata)

• salt

• biscuit

 

Equipment

 

• Earthenware latikan or bibingkaan (or 9 x 13 baking tray if unavailable)

• Talyasi (large cast-iron pan)

• Banana leaves (saba or San Juan variety; other banana varieties will impart an undesirably bitter flavor)

• Bilao (bamboo winnowing tray)

• 3 used cans

• Flat stainless steel cover or yero

 

Preparation of the Main Ingredients

 

• In a casserole, cook the coconut sugar (sinakob) and the coconut milk over medium heat and mix it until the sugar caramelizes. The molten finished product is called katiba. Crushed biscuit may be added as an optional thickening agent and to lessen the sweetness of the topping.

• In the meantime, place the glutinous rice (malagkit) and enough warm water in a container and soak it for about 1 hour and rinse it well after.

• Using a big pan (talyasi), cook the soaked glutinous rice (malagkit) and the coconut milk for 10 minutes. Add sugar and salt and stir the mixture regularly until the rice is cooked and becomes sticky.

 

Procedure

 

• On a flat surface on the ground, form a triangle using 3 tin cans, then place the latikan on the top of it.

• Make sure that the latikan is in the middle.

• Arrange the heated banana leaves so as to cover the entire latikan and make sure that there are no holes.

• Place the cooked glutinous rice (malagkit) on the latikan, then flatten it (palastaen).

• Put the caramelized sugar (katiba) on top of the glutinous rice (malagkit). Cover the latikan using the flat stainless steel cover.

• On top of the stainless, place dry firewood and start to make a fire. Make sure that the fire is evenly scattered and it is in medium heat so that the top of the rice cake will not be burned.

• After a few hours of firing, check the top of the latik if there are bubbles popping. That is the sign that the top is already done.

• Remove the coals on the top and place them under the latikan to recook the bottom part.

• Place the finished product on a bilao, then serve.

Alternate Procedure (for the topping)

• Prepare the topping by mixing all topping ingredients together in a pan, bring it to a boil and simmer on medium heat uncovered until heavily reduced but still runny.

• Pour topping over the rice cake on the baking pan then bake in a 180-deg C preheated oven for 1 hour or until topping becomes really thick and dark (not burnt).

• Remove from oven and set it aside to cool down for 1 hour.

 

Mrs. Lolita Junio of Brgy. Manambong Norte learned to make latik from her mother Dominga Junio. She learned it just by watching her mother cook until she mastered the recipe. She now uses this recipe to sell latik to her neighbors and even beyond her place, as she also accepts orders during certain occasions from outsiders.

 

Mrs. Junio says she teaches her family how to cook latik and advises them to teach it also to their future families, so the tradition will not vanish.

 

Mrs. Maria Cabatbat, 68 years old, is also one of the known producers of latik in Pangasinan. She said she has been cooking latik since first year college at the age of 17, so she has been producing latik for 51 years.

 

She learned the recipe from her mother, Mrs. Marcelina Magalong. Mrs. Cabatbat has taught the recipe to her employees, so that they can help her in the production of this popular dessert.

 

The rising price of ingredients is one real threat to the tradition of latik-making.

 

Buro

 

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Shelflex's Odorless Buro

 

“Panagburo" (or buro-making) is a traditional culinary craft in Bayambang, Pangasinan, especially in Brgy. Manambong Parte in District II.

 

Because of their proximity to Mangabul Lake, which used to teem with various species of freshwater fishes, the main ingredient of buro, the residents there learned to prepare to this product to preserve the abundant catch, not just for their personal use but also as a means of livelihood. Other barangays in the district where there is a sizable number of buro-makers are Langiran, Bongato East, Bongato West, and San Gabriel 2nd.

 

Bayambang's buro is considered the best in quality in the whole of Pangasinan. Freshly caught gourami, tilapia or dalag (mudfish) is drenched in salt and stuffed with ba-aw (Pangasinan for cooked rice) and fermented in a banga (earthen jar) for two to three weeks. Buro's smell is considered detestable by many, especially outsiders, but for locals who have acquired the taste for it, it is most tasty and delicious. What is unique about the buro made in Bayambang is that, compared to those made in other towns, bubor (fermenting agent) is not used to ferment the fish and rice. Instead, salt is used as the curing agent.

 

There is a variety of buro using smaller gourami and an even smaller variety (reportedly introduced by the Japanese?) called siringan, and this particular buro is called mulantong by locals.

 

Nowadays, because of modernization, people make use of plastic containers as storage for fermenting buro instead of banga, which may or may not affect the quality.

 

Making buro is not easy. One must clean the fish thoroughly, ensuring blood and all internal organs are removed. Then the fish stuffed with rice must be arranged properly inside the banga, making sure the whole thing is not contaminated by flies or other insects.

 

Lola Francisca Medrano, one of the oldest practitioners of panagburo in Manambong Parte, learned the process by observing her elders in San Gabriel 2nd when she was 23 years old. Lola Francisca has passed on her knowledge in making buro to her relatives, including her sons and daughters, and her neighbors.

 

The following is the basic process of buro-making:

 

Ingredients:

 

• tilapia or dalag (mudfish)

• cooked rice

• salt

• sliced bamboo shoots

 

Procedure:

 

• Clean the tilapia/dalag very well.

• Marinate the fish with salt overnight.

• The next day, prepare the banga, making sure it is clean and dry.

• Steam rice until cooked.

• Mix the salt and the rice well.

• Put some rice with salt at the bottom of the banga to serve as the bedding.

• Put some amount of rice in the fish belly. Sliced bamboo shoots may be added as an option.

• Arrange the fish and rice inside the banga one by one: After placing a piece of whole fish inside, put some salted rice on the top of it, and so on until all the fish have been placed inside.

• Put the remaining rice on top.

• Cover the banga with clean cloth then tie it around the rim.

• Place the banga in a place away from insects like ants and flies.

 

As relish, buro is typically sauteed in a lot of garlic, onion, and tomatoes.

 

Historical records show that the practice of making buro or panagburo dates back to the Spanish times. It is said that during Semana Santa (Holy Week), people abstained from eating meat as part of their religious devotion. Instead, they ate fish and vegetables, and buro was one of the dishes served on their table.

 

Today, the extent of buro-making in Manambong Parte is not what it used to be, after the supply of fish drastically dwindled when Mt. Pinatubo buried much of Mangabul Lake under lahar in 1990.

 

Inlubi

 

Inlubi is a black rice cake made from cooking deremen in gata or coconut cream. Deremen is the term for burnt immature glutinous rice grains originally toasted till they turn black right at the ricefield. It is a delicacy originally associated with Undas or All Saints' Day as deremen is harvested and available only towards the end of October and during the month of November. Making authentic inlubi is thus seasonal.

 

Outsiders often say that it is only in Pangasinan where black rice cake is a preferred delicacy. It may seem that eating black rice is not good or it may be associated with darkness, death and even the devil, but the truth is black rice cake is just like the regular rice cake called biko.

 

As a note to outsiders, it is not actually made of black rice per se, as the term indicates, but blackened rice. It is basically glutinous white rice boiled in freshly pressed coconut milk and sugar (sometimes with a sprinkling of anise) -- except that the rice used is made by harvesting malanguer a pagey (young palay of the sticky rice variety) specifically planted for deremen, and placed in narrow bamboo tubes of the bolô variety, for which Pangasinan was formerly named (Cabolòan, meaning a place of bamboos). The bamboo is burned from one end, letting the palay fall as the bamboo burns and consumes itself. The now burned palay is then pounded by a heavy wooden bayò (pestle) in a large stone lasong (mortar) until the husks are removed. The resulting belas (rice) is soft and chewy, almost flat and blackened, giving a toasted, smoky flavor. After the deremen goes over the fire and is stirred to taste, the resulting rice cake is now called inlubi.

 

This tradition is distinctly Pangasinense, unknown and non-existent outside the province, except probably in other areas of the Ilocos region. But nowadays it seems to be available all-year-round in the public, with locals eating it as snack even though it is not Undas, but this commercialized version of inlubi wrapped in little plastic bags may not be as authentic.

 

How to cook inlubi:

 

Ingredients

 

2 cups deremen

2 cups kakang gata*

1 cup 2nd gata*

2 cups washed sugar

coconut strips from 2 buco

a few pandan leaves

young banana leaves

 

Procedure

 

1. Soak the deremen in water (about 1 - 1 1/2 cups) and set aside.

2. Pour the 2nd gata in a thick pan and heat. When boiling, mix in the sugar and, if preferred, buco or young coconut strips. Bring back to a boil, stirring occasionally.

3. Strain the deremen and pour into the boiling gata, turning down the heat to medium. Stir constantly.

4. When the mixture is starting to dry up, pour in the kakang gata. Keep stirring to evenly distribute the kakang gata and to keep the inlubi from burning.

5. Add the pandan leaves.

6. The inlubi is cooked when the gata has been fully absorbed (about 30-45 minutes of muscle-wrenching stirring). It should be consistently sticky. Remove from fire and pick out the pandan leaves.

7. Pass the banana leaves over fire, then brush lightly with cooking oil. Use this to line a flat-bottomed, shallow plate, oiled side up. (Traditionally, the bigao or bamboo winnowing basket is used.)

8. Transfer the inlubi to the leaf-lined plate, distributing evenly to make it an inch thick. Let cool. Good for about 8 people.

The inlubi is best eaten cool. It will keep for about two days, longer if refrigerated. It can be eaten straight from the ref, or if preferred, heat in an oven/toaster on low for about five minutes and let cool prior to serving.

 

*To make gata:

 

Ingredients

 

manually grated (using an igar or manual coconut grater) or machine-ground meat from 2 mature coconuts

4 cups water heated to boiling point

 

Procedure

 

1. Put the coconut meat in a big pan or basin. Pour 2 cups boiling water and mix thoroughly with a ladle. Let stand for about 5 minutes, or until the mixture is cool enough to the touch.

2. Express the gata by getting fistfuls of the coconut meat and squeezing them thoroughly by hand. Repeat until all the gratings have been pressed.

3. Separate the expressed gata from the meat by straining carefully through a fine sieve. The strained liquid is the kakang gata or 1st gata.

4. Put the ground coconut meat back into the basin and pour the remaining boiled water, preferably reheated to boiling point. When the mixture has cooled, repeat steps 2-3. The 2nd strained liquid is the 2nd gata.

 

Lola Masyang is one of the makers of inlubi in our barangay of Buenlag 2nd. Inlubi-making is also done mostly by the lolas of each family in the barangay.

 

Inlubi-making is one of oldest culinary traditions known in the town of Bayambang, probably since the 1930s or even further back. It was learned from the lolas of the locals. As mentioned, deremen is basically pinipig (young glutinous rice) burned in its husk and pounded, so that when cooked into inlubi, it smells and tastes not only of the green ricefields during the rainy season, but of the burning ricefields after harvest as well, making it exotic to outsiders.

 

Locals love to share their own version of inlubi with their neighbors, making it a point of socialization and turning the local celebration of Undas unique and more memorable. Yes, there are different versions -- a soupy one in which the fresh deremen is steeped in just-boiled water and coconut milk is called ginaataan ya deremen, while an inlubi topped with latik (coconut reduction) is called latik ya deremen.

 

The culinary practice of inlubi-making is firmly established and growing until now, because it continues to be conveyed from one generation to another by other living practitioners in many parts of the town. However, the rapid advancement in technology poses a threat to this tradition as nowadays most of the children do not want to learn anymore this tedious practice, including deremen-making, because their time is occupied by their usage of different gadgets.

 

Deremen

 

 

Deremen-making is a unique rice preparation in our country and even outside the country. Made from toasted then pounded immature rice of the glutinous variety, it is one of the main ingredients in making the famous black rice cakes known as "inlubi", the pop rice made from it called "gipang", and even "deremen ya latik " which are in high demand during All Saints' and All Souls' Day, when it is traditionally used as something by which the living remember their dear departed kin.

 

Deremen is one of the oldest and traditional food in Pangasinan during Undas. It was probably developed in the 1900s.

 

It is available after the rice harvesting season every once a year, which falls at the end of October and early November.

The deremen makers of Brgy. Amanperez, Bayambang are known for being the best producers. They are known even as far as La Union, Tarlac City and Baguio City.

 

To make deremen, the immature grains are picked stalk by stalk. The stalks are then held and the grains are put on fire, gathered, and then pounded using a wooden mortar and pestle. The glutinous rice variety, which comes all the way from the towns of Mangaldan, Calasiao, Sta. Barbara, Sual, and Mangatarem, or sourced from Bayambang, is not only made for deremen but also for other native foods that Pangasinan is popularly known for, like tupig, suman, latik (Pangasinan term for latik-topped biko), and many more.

 

Deremen is abundant during the harvest season not just in Bayambang but also in many parts of Pangasinan, as many farmers plant glutinous rice because it costs more than ordinary rice. It is said that Pangasinan’s deremen has already travelled to many places and even overseas, where it has taken different shapes and colors. It is even served to guests in classy hotels, and luckily, it has retained its name.

 

According to the Undas tradition, deremen is usually placed at the altar of every Catholic household as a food offering for the dead. Old folks say that before the deremen could ever get into the mouth of the living, the dead must get it first. This is why, as a tradition, the rice cake is placed at the altar as an 'atang' or offering before the saints, usually before people go to the cemetery to pay their respects to their dead loved ones. Upon their return from the cemetery, the living could then partake of the deremen at the dining table.

 

Aling Josie Baldelomar, 59 years old and one of the practitioners in making deremen ever since she was a child, lives in Amanperez, Bayambang. She said that making deremen is difficult as it goes through a tedious process of production. If you can’t follow the correct process in making deremen, it will just look like and taste like normal malagkit (sticky rice).

 

Procedure:

 

1. First, prepare all the materials needed: talyasi (large iron pan), bigao (winnowing basket made from woven skin of bamboo tubes), lasong (mortar), alo (wooden pestle) and of course the glutinous rice.

2. Soak the burnt glutinous rice grains in water for 13 hours then wash the glutinous rice three times.

3. Put the glutinous rice in the talyasi and place and cook it in the pugon (furnace-type stove). Make sure that the glutinous rice is perfectly cooked.

4. Next, pour at least three tabos or dippers of water for every one sack of glutinous rice and mix it for 5 minutes.

5. After mixing the water and the glutinous rice, leave it for 15 hours.

6. After 15 hours of making the glutinous rice soft, pound the glutinous rice in the mortar or go to the rice mill to separate the glutinous rice from the chaff.

7. Lastly, cook again the glutinous rice within 10 minutes. After that, the glutinous rice can now be called deremen.

 

Aling Josie said she has been making deremen since she was a child. To this day, she continues the business her ancestors taught her. Just like other producers in Amanperez, Aling Josie makes it a point to pass on her knowledge in making deremen to her children, other family members, friends and neighbors.

 

To the people of Amanperez, deremen-making offers brisk business to them, a good source of income to their families, thus the tradition is well alive and even thriving. The most common threat is natural hazard, particularly destructive storms or typhoons.

 

Kundandit (Bayambang Version), Nilupak, Inangit, and Inkiwal

 

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-        Kundandit vs Nilupak

 

Say kundandit (odino dinekdek), dinekdek ya inlambong ya kamoteng kahoy ya laokan na insanglil ya mais ya giniling na pino tan ambalangan masamit.

 

Say nilupak, kamoteng kahoy ya inlambong insan dekdeken ya kaibay inigar ya niyog tan masamit. Sarag to met ya arumay inlambong ya gubal ya pontin seba.

 

Amay panagtapew na margarine ed kundandit tan nilupak, natan labat la itan. Say orihinal ya itatapew da et inigar ya niyog. Nayari met so repinado ya walay insangil ya linga to.

 

(Notes: Manaoag's versions of kundandit described on YouTube by Kara David and a Philippine Daily Inquirer feature by Gabriel Cardinoza appear to be different. Bayambang's versions of commercial kundandit and nilupak are also dusted with white sugar and toasted and crushed sesame seeds.)


Inangit vs Inkiwal


The inangit or pigar-pigar is glutinous rice cooked in coconut milk with both sides scorched to perfection. To scorch  both sides of the inangit, the whole mix is stirred over and over until it is properly cooked, and then each side is burnt a bit until it gives off a nice aroma. Pieces of banana leaves are used to cover both sides to prevent burning and so it is easy to turn over the whole inangit when it is time. A little salt is added to taste -- no sugar is used.

The burnt part is what people scramble to take part of and eat.

Inkiwal is like inangit, but the big difference is that it has sugar. It is likewise repeatedly mixed it until done, and then it is ready to be served. There is no need to scorch both sides. Anise seeds are often added in for a fragrant aroma.

Both the inangit and the inkiwal are a favorite offering on the altar (atang) for the deceased and as part of a set of offerings arranged outside the house to appease unseen spirits. It is believed that one should not make the mistake of eating the atang lest one becomes kabaw (forgetful), or worse, or one's mouth get mysteriously twisted (napiwis).


Contemporary Food Products

 

Okrantz Vacuum-Fried Vegetables and Tomato Salsa

 

 

The Pangasinan State University Bayambang Campus has long been known for its innovative research projects and products that bring recognition not only to the school, but also to the municipality. In 2015, the Department of Science and Technology in the Ilocos Region established a Food Innovation Center (FIC) inside the PSU Bayambang Campus which, up until now, has served as a space where researchers can create and develop food products.

 

Now, the Pangasinan State University-Department of Science and Technology Regional Office No I Food Innovation Center (PSU-DOST I FIC) is home to the technology used to create vacuum-fried okra, red onion, and squash. Vacuum-frying is defined as “a reasonably new technology which uses lower pressure and temperature rather than atmospheric deep-fat frying to improve the quality attributes of food products.” Developed by PSU instructors and lead researchers Dr. Raquel C. Pambid, Dr. Wilma M. de Vera, and Dr. Vicky C. Austria, the vacuum-fried products boast qualities that are appealing to the general public, especially the health-conscious.  Dr. Pambid explained that because of the process used in creating them, the products are natural, healthy, and non-carcinogenic. Through vacuum frying, vegetables that otherwise don’t appeal much to the taste buds, especially to children, are made tempting by giving them a delicate crunch but in a non-greasy way.

 

 

Realizing its potential, One Document Corp., with the help of the Local Government Unit of Bayambang, signed a Memorandum of Agreement with the PSU-DOST I FIC on December 19, 2017 which allows them to adopt the technology used in producing vacuum-fried okra, red onion, and squash. 1Document Corp CEO Jorge M. Yulo discussed with Mayor Cezar T. Quiambao and the researchers the possible strategies in which the products can be marketed outside of Bayambang to help add to the town’s revenue. At present, the products, including PSU-FIC’s very own tomato salsa, are now being sold in and outside the municipality as O-Krantz, packed and remodeled to be ready for export to other countries.

 

Bayambangueño farmers are the ones who shall benefit the most from this agreement as the key ingredients to be used are the ones that they are producing. This development signifies another step for Bayambangueños in our victory in the Revolution against Poverty.

 

Rice Crackers

 

May be an image of 1 person and food

 

An unassuming house in Brgy. Sancagulis has been producing rice crackers since the '80s.

 

According to Romualdo Castillo, President of the Sancagulis Multi-Purpose Cooperative which owns the mini-factory, he and his coworkers found themselves laid off from their job in Bulacan as fish cracker factory workers in the '80s. They went back home to Sancagulis with no idea what to do for gainful employment when it occurred to them to put into good use their knowledge and experience in making fish crackers.

 

During President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo's administration, Castillo and company decided to seek the help of the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE). They learned about its Adjustment Measure Program or AMP, which is "a safety net program that provides package of assistance and other forms of intervention as a means of helping workers and companies cope with economic and social disruptions." To avail of the program, the Sancagulis residents decided to pool their resources and form a workers' organization and have it accredited.

 

Duly registered in 2005 with 124 members, the organization was able to procure P1.1 million in DOLE assistance. On top of this, the Department of Science and Technology also stepped into the picture, providing help in packaging and labeling the product.

 

This is how the Sancagulis rice cracker was born.

 

The product was well-received by the locals. Public market stalls and sari-sari store owners eventually carried the product among the items they sold.

 

The no-fish, no-gluten cracker comes in three varieties: plain (orange color and curly shaped), turmeric (yellow and square-shaped), and spicy.

 

The cracker is indeed made of plain rice but it is fortified with some corn and cassava. The fortified ground rice is first steamed, then run through a food processor to flatten it and remove excess water, and then fried and finally dried out in the sun.

 

As of 2018, the factory employs 20 people working in shifts.

 

Carrying the barangay’s name, it can’t be helped that the Sancagulis rice cracker is now closely associated with the place. But with their clientele reaching as far as places outside town where beer drinkers are looking for some cheap pulutan (bar chow), it comes as no surprise that the

 

Sancagulis rice cracker eventually got associated with the town of Bayambang itself.

 

 

Sorbetes

 

Panaggawa na sorbetes (sorbetes-making) is being practiced in Sitio San Roque, Brgy. Bani. A group of residents currently owns an establishment where the members of the Bani Delicious Ice Cream Association make their product in relatively large batches, but they also produce sorbetes manually in their respective houses.

Sorbetes is a popular treat to beat the heat, especially during summer. In the Philippines, the manufacture of the popular frozen creamy dessert started during the Spanish colonial period.

 

Brgy. Bani in Bayambang specializes in panaggaway sorbetes using natural ingredients, without having to utilize a refrigerator.

 

The procedure of making sorbetes starts at night, and the product is sold the next morning.

 

The first step is to boil two pitchers of water. One of the main ingredients, the cassava flour, is dissolved separately in a half pitcher of cold water. After the water comes to a boil, it is poured into the cassava flour mix.

 

The rest of the steps is conducted the following morning. Both coconut milk and condensed milk are combined and added into the cassava mixture. The mixture is then divided equally into two containers called garapiniera. The two containers are placed inside the tangke or the cooler. Ice and rock salt are placed around the grapeniera to freeze the sorbetes. Then, one and a half kilograms of skimmed milk is added, while whisking the mixture using the bulabol.

 

This process continues until the mix reaches the right amount of volume and thickness. The last step is to pour three kilograms of sugar and different food additives into the mixture. Additional ice and rock salt are placed around the garapeniera up to its top.

 

The sorbetes is stored in the tangke for one hour and, afterwards, the sorbetes is now ready for serving.

 

In 1983, Mr. Rogelio S. Verseles Sr. and other people of Bani were once employees in an ice cream factory in Dagupan City. In 1986, they brought home the knowledge they gained in the sorbetes-making process and how it is marketed. Rogelio S. Verceles, Sr., 51 year old, has 36 years of experience in sorbetes-making, while Fernando S. Verseles, 43 years old, has been making sorbetes for 28 years. Fernando is the current president of the Bani Delicious Ice Cream Association. Up to this day, they are still at it, contributing significantly to the people’s livelihood in the area.

 

Selling the ice cream has become one of their main sources of income, especially during summer seasons, and they accept bulk orders for different occasions. Their sorbetes is affordable and it reaches places outside the town such as Mangaterem.

 

The Bani Delicious Ice Cream Association's sorbetes now comes in many flavors, namely cheese, peanut, chocolate, vanilla, melon, malunggay, carrot, and many more.

 

As a form of support, the Local Government Unit (LGU) of Bayambang, through the Department of Social Welfare and Development's Sustainable Livelihood Program (SLP), awarded a considerable amount of money to serve as the association’s additional capital, together with new equipment. The Kasama Kita Sa Barangay Foundation (KKSBFI) also constructed a mini-factory of ice cream for the group at the barangay talipapa.

 

 

Chelsea Peanut Butter

 

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Being likened to Skippy, a well-known imported brand of peanut butter, is perhaps the best kind of  endorsement Marjorie Lacap can ever dream to have.  Yet she routinely gets it. And that's through word of mouth, with not a single centavo spent on advertisement.

 

We are talking of her well-regarded Chelsea’s Peanut Butter, a home-made peanut butter that has less sodium and low sugar content and uses premium peanuts. Produced at her family's starkly modern home in Tococ East, it is a product of science and passion for invention.

 

Lacap is "Ma'am Lacap" to batches of Bayambangueño students, for she is a high school physics and chemistry teacher at the Pangasinan State University-Bayambang Campus. And take note, she has a doctorate degree. Because she works in an environment friendly to creative thinking and innovation, peanut butter production took her interest one day until she actually tried manufacturing it at home. With assistance from the Department of Science and Technology and corresponding support from the Food Innovation Center of PSU Bayambang, not to mention her husband, a triathlete who's a dead-ringer for actor Michael de Mesa, she found possibilities with her find, until in 2017, she went full blast on it and actually sold her bottled products out there.

 

The brand name, Lacap says, came from the idea of turning to peanut butter for livelihood when she was carrying her first child, Chelsea.

 

Among Lacap's other revelations is that the peanuts are imported from India and China, because the local supply cannot cope with the demand when production starts. Chelsea Peanut Butter, she adds, is different from the other brands in the market because corn oil is used instead of coconut oil.

 

"Many customers like the product because it’s not salty, yet not so sweet," she observes. "Also, unlike other brands, Chelsea's Peanut Butter do not settle and harden that much at the bottom."

 

"As for the oil, we are working on it, so as to minimize it from gathering on the surface." "By the way, we use lecithin as emulsifier," she volunteers.

 

To date, they have two varieties: regular and chunky. "Some people like their peanut butter chunky," she explains. They also plan to add more variety in their product offerings, like peanut butter cookies and chocolate.

 

Why peanut butter and not other products, especially non-food products? Lacap answers, "Because we have observed that the market is active when it comes to food. There is no dormant month or season for food."

 

"The product was first sold in Tarlac," she continues. "Now we also deliver in Bacnotan, La Union."

 

And how do they promote the product? "We just display them in seminars, coops, etc.," she says. We think that is another way of saying they are letting the quality of the product speak for itself.

 

Packaged with a classy design, customers are often surprised when they find out that Chelsea Peanut Butter is locally made. The implication is, if it is this good, then it must be imported. But Marjorie Lacap and her family have proven that, with hard work, resourcefulness, dedication, and the right knowledge and technology, locals are capable of crafting excellent products, and excellent products that sell.

 

 

Bayambang’s Best Longanisa and Skinless Longanisa

 

 

 

Specially formulated by 1Food Corporation, Bayambang’s Best Longanisa/Skinless Longanisa has chunky, perfectly spiced bits of meat and is on the sweet side. It is manufactured by the residents of ANCOP Ville, a village in Brgy. Sancagulis. The residents are beneficiaries of the housing project of the Couples for Christ-Answering the Cry of the Poor (Canada) in collaboration with Kasama Kita sa Barangay Foundation Inc.

 

 

Organic Lemongrass Concentrate

 

https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8KIF-BK92-zeCDwkyMAprJjYkmmN-rpEvPZMYkt02-nzwu0pjHjZdeBAcgYp1OlP3q067OM70uPk1rAH9MQJHbDonLPR8zAK2nRHrTLU-lMrjdA6w53mT_33V39GrCO6KOVCLRbCgQzc/s320/DSC07041.JPG

 

 

 

Edgard Guevarra of GEO Farm, an organic farm (among others) in Brgy. Mangayao, used to make an organic lemongrass concentrate which is sweetened using muscovado sugar. The concoction also contains gotu kola and mint extracts. It is reputed to be an herbal drink.

 

 

References:

Municipal Consultant on Museum, Culture and Arts Gloria de Vera-Valenzuela: ginisan crunchy buro, putseron dalag and other such inventions, ginisan kamatis, ginisan kamatis with egg

Office of the Special Economic Enterprise Gernalyn Santos: present market offerings

Municipal Tourism Officer Rafael Saygo

Mayor's Action Center head Jocelyn Espejo: baguisen

Municipal Media Affairs Officer Dr. Leticia B. Ursua: inkaldit, kundandit

Mildred S. Odon: pising ya inangel

Some of the articles were taken from the Bayambang Culture Mapping Project of LGU-MTCAO and Bayambang National High School in cooperation with the Center for Pangasinan Studies


Buro-making: https://bayambangmunicipalnews.blogspot.com/2019/08/buro-making-bayambang-style.html
Pinakbet: https://bayambangmunicipalnews.blogspot.com/2019/08/feature-how-bayambanguenos-cook-pinakbet.html
Kanen tan Mirindal: https://bayambangmunicipalnews.blogspot.com/2019/09/a-quick-survey-of-local-kakanin-and.html
Inlubi: https://bayambangmunicipalnews.blogspot.com/2019/08/panag-inlubi.html
Gipang: https://bayambangmunicipalnews.blogspot.com/2018/03/crunchy-bricks-you-can-eat.html
Deremen: https://bayambangmunicipalnews.blogspot.com/2019/10/panaggawa-na-deremen.html

LGU Accomplishments - June 2021

GOOD GOVERNANCE

BYB Millennial Challenge, Launched

Bilang parte ng 2021 Independence Day celebration, inilunsad ni Mayor Quiambao, sa pamamagitan ng Bayambang Poverty Reduction Action Team, ang Millennial Challenge, kung saan inaanyayahan ang lahat ng Sangguniang Kabataan na mag-isip ng proyekto para sa kanilang sariling barangay base sa limang sektor ng Bayambang Poverty Reduction Plan o BPRP. Ang mga magwawaging proyekto ay gagawaran ng pondo upang maisakatuparan ang mga ito.

SOMA 2021: Rising Up to the Challenge with New Normal Innovations 

Sa kanyang ika-limang State of the Municipality Address na ginanap noong June 30 sa Balon Bayambang Events Center, iprinesenta ni Mayor Quiambao ang mga naging programa at proyekto ng lokal na pamahalaan sa nakaraang taon bilang pagtugon sa pangangailangan ng mga Bayambangueño at pagpatuloy ng Rebolusyon Laban sa Kahirapan sa gitna ng pandemya. Sa kanyang talumpati, binigyang-diin niya ang mga ginawang inobasyon ng LGU sa pamamagitan ng paggamit ng makabagong teknolohiya upang mabilis na masolusyunan ang iba’t-ibang hamon ng panahon sa bagong normal. Ating sulyapan ang mga naging kaganapan sa araw na iyon sa videong ito.

Komprehensibong Serbisyo Goes to San Gabriel 2nd

Noong June 4, nagpatuloy naman sa Barangay San Gabriel 2nd Covered Court ang Komrehensibong Serbisyo sa Bayan upang pagsilbihan ang magkakaratig-barangay sa District 5. Gaya ng inaasahan, daan-daang residente ang naging benepisyaryo ng mga serbisyo, hindi lang medikal, kundi pati mga serbisyong mula sa lahat ng departamento ng LGU.

Komprehensibong Serbisyo, Nagbalik sa Pantol

Noong June 10, dinala ng Munisipyo ang Komprehensibong Serbisyo sa Bayan Year IV sa Pantol Evacuation Center, Brgy. Pantol upang maghatid ng iba’t-ibang serbisyo ng LGU-Bayambang.

Kabilang sa mga dumating ay si Mayora Niña Jose Quiambao, na dumalo sa unang pagkakataon. Nagbigay ng galak sa mga mamamayan ng Pantol si Mayora Niña nang siya ay magbigay ng surpresa sa pamamagitan ng pamamahagi ng grocery package, bigas at vitamins. Bilang parte ng pag-obserba ng National Earthquake Drill, itinuro naman ni MDRRMO head Genevieve U. Benebe ang mga dapat gawin kung sakaling magkaroon ng lindol. 

Komprehensibong Serbisyo sa Bayan, Nagpatuloy sa Manambong Sur 

Sa ika-apat na pagkakataon ay muling naging host ang Manambong Sur para sa Komprehensibong Serbisyo para sa Bayan, at gaya ng dati, ito ay ginanap sa Manambong Sur Evacuation Center. Ang tinaguriang "Manambong Trio" na binubuo ng Manambong Norte, Manambong Sur, at Manambong Parte, ay sumunod na tumanggap ng iba't ibang serbisyo ng lokal na pamahalaan ng Bayambang noong Hunyo 18, 2021. Naging mainit ang pagtangkilik ng lahat sa programa sapagkat hindi rin ipinagpapaliban ng mga opisyales ng LGU ang pagsuporta sa lahat ng serbisyong pampubliko gaya nito gaya ng medical at dental, agricultural, at social services.

LIVELIHOOD & EMPLOYMENT

6 Beneficiaries Receive DSWD Seed Capital Fund

Noong ika–17 ng Mayo, ang anim na pamilyang inendorso ni Mayor Cezar Quiambao sa pamamagitan ng Municipal Social Welfare and Development Office (MSWDO) ay nakatanggap ng Seed Capital Fund (SCF) mula sa Department of Social Welfare and Development–Sustainable Livelihood Program (DSWD–SLP). Ang SCF ay kanilang gagamitin bilang panimula o karagdagang puhunan para sa kanilang kanilang napiling hanapbuhay.

Virtual Job Fair, a Success

Naging matagumpay ang inilunsad a Virtual Job Fair ng Municipal Public Services Office sa tulong ng Department of Labor and Employment. Daan-daan ang nakisali gamit ang computer o cell phone upang mag-apply sa iba't-ibang job vacancies na inanunsyo ng iba't-ibang participating companies. 

DA-ATI, Nagpa-Training sa Cassava Production and Value-Added Processing

Noong June 22-24, nagsagawa ng tatlong araw na pagsasanay sa cassava production and value-added processing ang Agricultural Training Insitute-Region 1 ng Department of Agriculture para sa mga magsasaka ng Brgy. Ambayat 1st.  Tinalakay din ang wastong pagtatanim ng cassava upang mas mapalawig pa ang produksyon sa Bayambang. Nagkaroon din ng training sa paggawa ng iba't ibang luto ng cassava. At bilang post-training support, nagpamahagi rin ng ATI ng mga kagamitan sa pagluluto ng cassava tulad ng oven at grater sa mga magsasakang nais ng value-added livelihood. 

FINANCIAL ADMINISTRATION & TAXATION

Tax Campaign, Patuloy sa mga Barangay

Patuloy ang pagpupursige ng Assessor's Office upang magkaroon ng positibong pananaw ang ating mga kababayan ukol sa pagbabayad ng buwis. Nitong May 31, sila ay nagtungo sa Tatarac upang magsagawa ng appraisal ng buildings, commercial establishments, at iba pang taxable and non-taxable properties. Namahagi rin sila ng Owner's Copy of Tax Declaration sa mga residenteng nagsipagbayad ng amilyar.

Assessor Office, Nagconduct ng Verification Survey sa Langiran 

Noong June 29, nagconduct ang Assessor's Office ng verification survey sa Brgy. Langiran upang malaman ang right of way sa lugar at magkaroon ng just compensation para sa mga apektadong landowners

HEALTH 

RHU 1 Sanitary Inspector Conducts WASH Orientation 

Isang orientation tungkol sa water sanitation and hygiene (WASH) ang ibinigay ni RHU 1 Sanitary Inspector, Danilo Rebamontan, para sa mga kapwa health workers ng RHU noong June 7 sa RHU Conference Room. Ang mga kaalamang kanyang ibinahagi ay nakatakdang ipasa ng RHU personnel sa mga barangay health workers upang matuto sila ng mga alituntunin kung sakaling may pagbaha at iba pang kalamidad.

Weighing and Immunization of Infants, Done Monthly by RHU Personnel  

Ang pagtimbang at immunization para mga 0 to 12 month-old na mga sanggol say isinasagawa ng mga health workers ng ating RHU kada buwan sa iba't-ibang barangay ng Bayambang. Ito ay upang makaiwas ang mga sanggol sa mga sakit na maaaring puksain gamit ang bakuna. 

Libreng Pagpapaanak, Patuloy sa RHU 1 at 2

Sa gitna ng pandemya, patuloy sa LIBRENG pagpapaanak ang ating mga health workers sa RHU 1 at RHU 2. Ang dalawang pasilidad na ito ay pawang Department of Health- at PhilHealth-accredited. Malaking katipiran para sa mga benepisyaryo ang libreng serbisyong ito ng pamahalaang lokal sa tulong ng DOH.

Senior Citizens, Kabilang sa Bagong Batch ng Nabakunahan

Noong June 14, matagumpay na nabakunahan ang bagong batch ng Bayambangueno, salamat sa pagpupursige ng Task Force Bakuna sa ilalim ni Ret. Col. Leonardo F. Solomon at Municipal Health Officer, Dra. Paz Vallo. Sa 536 indibidwal na nagparehistro, may 510 katao ang nabakunahan, at may 26 na pina-reschedule ang vaccination dahil sa pagtaas ng kanilang presyon. Karamihan sa mga bagong nabakunahan ay senior citizens. Ang latest development na ito ay resulta ng direktang pagsulat ng liham ni Mayor Cezar Quiambao sa Department of Health kung saan siya ay humingi ng adisyunal na vaccines para sa kanyang mga nasasakupan. Kaya't sa mga interesado, maaaring magpaprofile na sa kanilang Barangay Health Worker (BHW) at sabihin sa kanila kung gustong magpabakuna para sila ay unahin sa vaccination day.

Dugong Alay, Tulong na Bukal ng mga Bayani sa Bagong Normal 

Noong June 21, ang mga tinaguriang bayani sa ‘bagong normal’ ay naging matagumpay sa isa na namang Mobile Blood Donation sa Balon Bayambang Events Center sa pag-oorganisa ng Rural Health Unit I at II at sa pakikipagtulungan ng Region 1 Medical Center at Rotary Club of Bayambang. Kasama sa mga naging recruiters ng blood donors ang Local Council of Women, at namigay naman ng libreng t-shirt ang Kasama Kita sa Barangay Foundation Inc. para sa mga donors.

LEGISLATIVE WORK

Daing Ukol sa BayWad at CENPELCO, Tinugunan ng SB

Isang public hearing ang ginanap noong June 28 sa Sangguniang Bayan Session Hall, kung saan ipinatawag ng Sangguniang Bayan ang mga representante ng CENPELCO at BayWad, upang magpaliwanag at maaksyunan ang mga hinaing ng taumbayan ukol sa kanilang serbisyo. Dito ay sinagot ng dalawang kumpanya ang mga katanungan ukol sa madalas na pagkakaroon ng brownout at madalas na paghina o pagkawala ng tubig. Humingi naman ng dispensa ang dalawang kumpanya at nangakong gagawin ang lahat upang makapagbigay ng mas maayos na serbisyo.

EDUCATION

PSU-BC, Nagbigay ng Training para sa CDWs

Ang Pangasinan State University-Bayambang Campus sa pangunguna ni Campus Executive Director, Dr. Liza Quimson, ay nakipagtulungan sa Municipal Social Welfare and Development Office upang makapagbigay ng free extension services sa 75 Child Development Workers (CDWs) ng Bayambang. Ito ay sa pamamagitan ng tatlong araw na face-to-face training at weekly online training hanggang Marso. Nagsimula ang opening program ng naturang training noong June 22 sa Balon Bayambang Events Center. 

Lions Club Donates Classroom to Cason ES

Kamakailan ay pinasiyaan ng Bayambang Bayanihan Lions Club ang isang classroom sa Cason Elementary School sa Brgy. Sancagulis sa tulong ng Lions Club International 301-C Northern Philippines. Kabilang sa mga nagbigay ng tulong upang mabuo ang classroom ay sina Mayor Quiambao, Vice-Mayor Sabangan, at mga municipal councilors.  Sa turnover ceremony noong June 27, naroon ang Charter President na si Rainier Gutierrez at District Governor Robert Ranchez. Ang susi ng classroom ay malugod na tinanggap ng buong Cason ES teaching force sa ilalim ni Principal Janet Macam.

OTHER SOCIAL SERVICES

CDWs, Tumanggap ng Incentives

Sa buwanang pagtitipon ng mga Child Daycare Workers (CDW) na inorganisa ng MSWDO sa Events Center noong June 3, pinag-usapan ang akreditasyon ng mga Child Development Centers (CDCs), ang nalalapit na pagsasanay ng mga CDWs, ang implementasyon ng Early Childhood Care and Development-Information System (ECCD-IS), at ang recognition rites na magaganap sa July 10. Pagkatapos ng pagpupulong, muling nakatanggap ang mga CDWs ng quarterly cash incentives. At sa inisyatibo ni Mayor Cezar Quiambao, nadoble ang kanilang incentives. Mula P1,000, ito ay ginawang P2,000. 1st Virtual Job Fair, Naging Matagumpay

Empowering Women through Self-Care

Bilang parte ng pag-oorganisa ng MSWDO ng community-based women's groups sa 77 barangays ng Bayambang, nagkaconduct ang RHU I ng serye ng lecture ukol sa self-care, maternal care, at child care sa mga myembrong kababaihan. ...Sapagkat ang malusog na kababaihan ay nangangahulugan ng malusog na pamilya at malusog ding kabataan.

STAC Students, Sinorpresa ni Mayor at Mayora ng Regalong Gadgets; Parents ng STAC Students, Sinorpresa Rin

Sa inisyatibo ni Sangguniang Bayan Committee Chairman on Social Services, Councilor Benjamin "Benjie" S. de Vera, may 14 na aktibong mag-aaral ng Stimulation Therapeutic Activity Center ng Bayambang ang tumanggap ng tig-isang tablet galing sa opisina ni Mayor Cezar Quiambao. Ito ay bilang pagtugon sa kanilang kahilingan na magkaroon ng kagamitan sa pag-aaral lalo na sa panahong ito na importante ang electronic gadgets upang makapag-aral online. 

Kinabukasan ay panibagong sorpresa ang inihatid nina Mayor Cezar at Mayora Niña para sa mga magulang ng mga pupils ng Stimulation Therapeutic Activity Center (STAC)-Bayambang. Ang mga ito ay binigyan din tig-iisang smartphone at grocery package. Naging posible ang mga pasorpresang ito sa tulong nina Local Youth Development Officer Johnson Abalos at Councilor De Vera.

Victory Church Bayambang, Muling Namigay ng Food Treats sa CWDs 

Limampung Children with Disability (CWD) ang tumanggap ng food pack na naglalaman ng masustansyang pagkain mula sa Victory Church Bayambang, sa pakikipag-ugnayan sa Stimulation and Therapeutic Activity Center (STAC) noong June 26. Sa taunang handog na ito ng Victory Church, nagkaroon din ng medical check-up para sa mga bata sa tulong ng mga Rural Health Units, at nabigyan din sila ng bitamina galing sa Municipal Nutrition Action Office (MNAO).

PWDs Receive Assistive Devices

Inihatid ng Municipal Social Welfare and Development Office (MSWDO), kasama si Councilor Martin Terrado II, noong June 24-26 sa tahanan ng 17 Persons with Disability (PWD) mula sa iba’t ibang barangay ang mga assistive devices kabilang ang15 adult wheelchairs, 2 adult walkers, at isang pares ng crutch. Ang mga assistive devices na ito ay makatutulong upang mapagaan ang kanilang pang-araw-araw na gawain.

Feeding Activity, Isinagawa ng MANGOs sa Zone V

Patuloy ang Bayambang MANGOs sa pagsasagawa ng mga aktibidad bilang suporta sa Rebolusyon Laban sa Kahirapan, sa pakikipag-ugnayan sa Municipal Administrator's Office at CSO Desk. Noong June 26, ang mga member organizations ng MANGOs ay nagsagawa ng isang feeding activity sa ilalim ng Adopt-a-Barangay Nutrition Development Program sa Zone V. Nanguna ang Xtreme Riders sa aktibidad, kasama ang Eagle Squad of Pangasinan at sa pakiki-ugnayan sa Brgy. Zone V officials at Health Worker nito. Ang grupo ay namahagi sa mga kabataan ng sopas, nilagang itlog, at ice cream, at nagbigay din ng mga face mask.

PEACE AND ORDER & PUBLIC SAFETY

POSO, Muling Nakasabat ng mga Magnanakaw

A. Sa pamumuno ni Bayambang Public Order and Safety Office (POSO) Chief Col. Leonardo Solomon, muling nakasabat ng mga magnanakaw ang mga roving security patrol ng POSO. Noong June 10, sa Brgy. Bani, namataan ang isang bata lumabag sa curfew at dala ang isang mountain bike na tinangay pala mula sa may-ari na taga-Brgy. Goliman, Malasiqui. Nakatakas ang salarin, subalit naibalik sa may-ari ang mountain bike. 

B. Noon namang June 12, nakasabat ng mga traffic enforcer ang isa pang magnanakaw bunsod ng isang reklamo ng isang may-ari ng klinika sa bayan. Ayon sa salaysay ng may-ari, natangay ang kanyang bag na may P20,000 habang walang tao sa klinika. Nahuli ang suspek na taga-Brgy. Matalaba, Lingayen, at kaagad na naibalik ang pera sa biktima.

POSO, Todo Suporta rin sa mga Community Pantry

Nakiisa ang LGU sa pagsuporta sa mga community pantry sa Bayambang sa pamamagitan ng mga security force ng POSO. Noong June 12, sa loob ng Municipal Plaza, naroon ang presensiya ng POSO upang mapanatili ang kaayusan at pagpapatupad ng mga health protocol gaya ng social distancing sa ating mga kababayan na nagtungo sa community pantry na inorganisa ng Binibining Bayambang sa tulong ng Local Council of Women.

Paghihigpit sa Bagsakan, Tuluy-Tuloy

Patuloy ang araw-araw na pagbabantay at pagmomonitor sa Bagsakan ng PNP, POSO and Office of the Special Economic Enterprise, upang masiguro ang pag-obserba ng mga minimum health protocol sa lugar. Matatandaang ilang beses na pansamantalang ipinasara ang Bagsakan at Public Market area noong nakaraang taon matapos magpositibo sa COVID-19 ang ilang tindero at stall owner’s dito pati na ang ilang miyembro ng kanilang pamilya.

Special Meeting and Orientation, Isinagawa ng BPSOF

Noong Hunyo 20, nagsagawa ang Barangay Public Safety Officers Federation, sa ilalim ni BPSOF President Rodel Mecate, at sa tulong ng Bayambang Municipal Association of NGOs, ng isang Special Meeting and Orientation sa Balon Bayambang Events Center. Dito ay tinalakay bilang refresher course ang roles and responsibilities ng BPSOs o Civilian Volunteer Officers.

TOURISM, CULTURE & ARTS

DOT-R1 at PTCAO, Bumisita

Bumisita sa Bayambang ang Department of Tourism – Region 1 at ang Pangasinan Provincial Tourism and Cultural Affairs Office (PTCAO) noong June 8 upang i-assess ang idustriya ng turismo sa bayan.  Ang kanilang grupo ay binati nina Mayor Cezar Quiambao at Supervising Tourism Operations Officer Rafael L. Saygo kung saan ipinresenta niya ang mga plano ng Lokal na Pamahalaan sa inaasahang pagbisita ni DOT Secretary Bernadette Romulo-Puyat at Regional Director Jeff Ortega. Matapos ang presentasyon ay sinamahan naman ng MTCAO ang mga bisita sa mga tourism sites ng Bayambang.

Mga Produktong Bayambangueño, Kabilang sa Food Mapping ng DOT-R1

Noong ding araw na iyon ay sinamahan gn MTCAO staff ang mga bisita upang tikman nila ang buro at gipang ng Bayambang upang maging kabilang sa Department of Tourism – Region 1 food mapping project. Sila ay sinamahan sa pagawaan ng buro sa Brgy. Bongato East at sa pagawaan ng gipang sa Brgy. Amanperez. Ang dalawang produktong ito ay ipinagmamalaking gawa at inobasyon ng mga Bayambangueño na kabilang sa mga nagpapayaman ng kultura ng Bayambang.

Bayambang Marks 123rd Independence Day

Ipinagdiwang ang ika-123 na Araw ng Kalayaan noong ika-12 ng Hunyo sa Balon Bayambang Events Center. Sa pangunguna ng Municipal Tourism and Cultural Affairs Office, sinariwa sa alaala ng mga Bayambangueño ang kabayanihan ng ating mga kapwa Pilipino na ipinaglaban ang kalayaan ng bansa mula sa mga dayuhan. Ang pagdiriwang na ito ay alinsunod sa direktiba ng DILG na ipaalam sa bayan ang mga prinsipyo at values sa mahalagang yugtong ito ng kasaysayan.

Tourism Secretary Berna Romulo Puyat, Bumisita

Bayambangueños, sinalubong si DOT Secretary Bernadette Puyat Sa kauna-unahang pagkakataon ay bumisita sa Bayambang ang Department of Tourism Secretary - Bernadette Romulo-Puyat, kasama si DOT Regional Director Jeff Ortega. Ang Bayambang ang unang-unang binisita ni Secretary Puyat sa buong Pangasinan bilang parte ng kanyang layunin na i-promote ang iba’t ibang destinasyon sa probinsya. Bagamat maiksi ang kanyang oras ay siniguro ng Tourism Office, sa pangunguna ni Ginoong Rafael Saygo, na naipakita sa sekretarya ng turismo at sa kanyang buong grupo ang mga maipagmamalaki nating mga kultura at produkto - kabilang ang Saint Vincent Ferrer Prayer Park at ang Saint Vincent Parish Church. Ito ay patunay na ang turismo sa bayan ay patuloy na yumayabong at ang Bayambang ay unti-unti nang nakikilala sa buong bansa.

AGRICULTURAL MODERNIZATION

Bagong Allocation ng Rice Seeds mula DA, Dumating

Dumating ang unang batch ng hybrid rice seeds na alokasyon ng Bayambang mula sa Department of Agriculture sa ilalim ng Rice Banner Program nito. May 3,520 bags ng 15 kilograms ng palay ang nakatakdang ipamahagi sa mga lokal na magsasaka. Sa kabuuan ay may halagang P15,840,000 ang alokasyong alay mula sa DA.

Training Seminar on Hatchery Management and Culture of Tilapia and Hito

Noong June 7, 8, 9 and 10, naglunsad ang Municipal Agriculture Office ng apat na araw ng Training-Seminar on Hatchery Management and Culture of Tilapia and Hito sa Langiran Elementary School sa tulong ng Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources. Kabilang sa mga aktibidad ang benchmarking activity sa Salayog Hatchery sa Brgy. Bacnono. Dito ay naging participants ang 40 na katao mula sa Brgy. Tampog, San Vicente, Paragos, Langiran, at Apalen, at Asin, at karamihan sa kanila ay mga kabataan.

Bagong Batch ng Farmers, Sumali sa RiceBis Year 2

Muling nagbabalik ang Rice Business Innovation System project ng Philippine RIce Research Institute o PhilRice sa bayan ng Bayambang. Kamakailan ay nagumpisa na ang dalawang batch ng participants para sa Farmers Field School. Mayroong 100 farmer participants kada batch mula sa District 1 at 4 sa Brgy. Dusoc Covered Court at sa District 6 at 7 sa Brgy. Macayocayo Covered Court.

Farmers’ Field School, Nag-Umpisang Muli

Ang pangalawang batch ng RiceBIS Community na itinatag ng PhilRice sa Bayambang ay sumabak na sa kanilang pangalawang session para sa wet season ng taong 2021. Ang mga kasapi ay magkahiwalay na umattend ng  Farmers’ Field School sa Brgy. Dusoc at sa Brgy. Macayocayo, sa tulong ng Municipal Agriculture Office at BPRAT.

Cash Assistance para sa mga Biktima ng Harabas, Ibinigay Na 

Noong June 11, nagpamahagi ng cash assistance ang LGU Bayambang sa tulong ng MDRRMO, Department of Agriculture, at Treasury Office sa mga biktima ng harabas sa bayan ng Bayambang.  Umabot ng P827,227.50 ang halaga ng naipamigay na tulong sa 15 na barangay na binubuo ng 415 na benepisyaryo. Ayon sa Treasury Office, ang susunod na iskedyul ng pamimigay ng cash assistance ay sa susunod na linggo, sa June 22.

ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT

"Orientation on 'Koop Kapatid Program'", Isinagawa ng CDA

Sa inisyatibo ni Municipal Administrator, Atty. Raymundo Bautista Jr., bilang Chairman ng CSOs and Cooperatives, nagkaroon ng isang "Orientation on 'Koop Kapatid Program'" ang Cooperative Development Authority sa Balon Bayambang Events Center noong June 17. Nanguna sa nasabing aktibidad ang mismong Regional Director ng CDA Region I, Gng. Josefina Bitonio. Ito ay isang karagdagang orientation para sa mga kooperatiba kung paano mas mapapanatiling matibay ang mga ito, maliit man sila o malaki, sa pamamagitan ng pagtulong ng mga malalaking kooperatiba sa mga maliliit na kooperatiba.

MCDO Meets with Paragos Co-op

Noong June 22, nagdaos ng pagpupulong ang Municipal Cooperative Development Office kasama ang Brgy. Paragos Agriculture Cooperative sa Brgy. Paragos Covered Court. Layunin ng pulong na mapalakas pa ang operasyon ng naturang kooperatiba at maging matagumpay sa kanilang layuning umunlad.

INFRASTRUCTURE DEVELOPMENT

Evaluation ng Ating PRDP Proposal, Nagpatuloy

Tuluy-tuloy pa rin ang evalution ng national offices sa ating application para sa World Bank-funded project sa ilalim ng Philipine Rural Development Project ng Department of Agriculture. Dahil dito ay nakipagpulong si Mayor Cezar Quiambao sa Regional Project Coordinating Office, National Project Coordinating Office, at Project Support Office ng ahensya. Ang PRDP Technical Working Group naman ay nag-conduct ng panibagong ocular inspection ng mga lugar na pagagawan ng bagong daan at tulay sa San Gabriel 2nd.

Geodetic Survey para sa PRDP, Isinagawa

Nagsagawa naman ang Assessor's Office geodetic engineer at ang kanyang team ng Phase 1 river crossing surveys para sa cross-section at IBUILD (Intensified Building Up of Infrastructure for Logistics and Development) purposes sa Mananzan River spillway section sa Brgy. San Gabriel 2nd bilang parte pa rin ng ating aplikasyon para sa 'Improvement of San Gabriel 2nd Road with Bridge Project' na popondohan sa ilalim ng Philippine Rural Development Project (PRDP) ng DA.

Assessor, Legal Officer, Nangalap ng Datos para sa Panukalang PRDP Project

Noong June 14, nagtungo ang Municipal Assessor's Office kasama si Municipal Legal Officer, Atty. Bayani Brillante, sa Brgy. San Gabriel 2nd upang mangalap ng datos tungkol sa estado ng mga pananim na maaapektuhan ng panukalang "Farm-to-Market-Road with Bridge Project" sa ilalim ng Philippine Rural Development Program ng Department of Agriculture.

Covered Court in Bical Sur

Covered Court in Mangayao

Covered Court in Manambong Norte

On-going Construction of Covered Court Bleacher and Painting Works in Brgy. Dusoc

On-going Construction of Flood Control/Drainage System in Brgy. Wawa

On-going Construction of Access Road at Sitio Balangobong, Brgy. Tambac

Covered Court in Amancosiling Norte

Barangay Hall in Bani

Side Walk/Road Widening in Sapang

Municipal Hatchery in Langiran

Update: RHU 5 in Brgy. Pantol

Balon Bayambang Museum, Itatayo Na!

Ongoing: Construction of Multi-Purpose Hall in Brgy. Amanperez

Ongoing: Construction of Multi-Purpose Hall in Brgy. Sancagulis

Completed: Stone Masonry in Ataynan-Bacnono Roadline

Completed: Core Local Access Road at Sitio Balangobong, Brgy. Tambac

Completed: Core Local Access Road at Avocado St., Brgy. Bical Norte

ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION

Bayambang ESWMO at MRF, Kinilala sa Regional ESWM Summit 

Noong Hunyo 22, binigyan ng pagkilala ang LGU-Bayambang sa ginanap na virtual summit, ang 5th Region 1 Ecological Solid Waste Management Summit and Recognition. Dito ay kinilala ang pag-apruba sa 10-Year Solid Waste Management Plan ng Bayambang at ang "outstanding practices in recycling activity" ng ating Materials Recovery Facility sa Brgy. Telbang, alinsunod sa Ecological Solid Waste Management Act. Ayon sa Solid Waste Management Office, ang Bayambang ay isa sa 13 lamang na munisipalidad sa probinsya ng Pangasinan na may aprubadong 10-Year Solid Waste Management Plan.

MANGOs, Muling Nag-Clean-Up Drive

Noong May 22 ay muling nagsagawa ng clean-up drive ang Bayambang Municipal Association of NGOs sa iba't-ibang lugar sa bayan. Iba't-ibang kasaping organisasyon mula sa pribadong sektor ang muling nakilahok upang magbayanihan para sa inang kalikasan at para sa kaayusan at kalinisan.

DISASTER RESILIENCY

Site Assessment in Ataynan & Bacnono

Nagsagawa ng site assessment ang MDRRMO kasama ni CSFirst Green Forester, Mr. Webon Lomong-oy, sa Brgy. Ataynan at Bacnono noong ika-1 ng Hunyo. Ang isinagawang site assessment ay para sa proyektong "Agno River Rehabilitation" ng LGU sa tulong ng MDRRMO at CSFirst Green.

"Mag OSH-UP Tayo!"

Noong May 27 at 28, umattend ang MDRRMO sa isang serye ng webinar na handog ng Occupational Safety and Health Center at Department of Labor and Employment Regional Office 5. Kabilang sa mga pinag-usapan dito ay kung papaano masisiguro ang indoor air quality sa opisina upang maging ligtas ang lahat sa nakahahawang sakit. 

Bagyong Dante, Pinaghandaan ng MDRRMC

Noong June 2, nagsagawa ng Pre-Disaster Risk Assessment ang Municipal Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (MDRRMC) patungkol sa Bagyong Dante. Pinangunahan ni Local DRRM Officer Genevieve Benebe ang assessment maging ang pagpupulong sa MDRRM Office. Kabilang sa mga paghahandang isinagawa ay ang pagmonitor sa bagyo, preparasyon ng mga sasakyan, relief goods at rescue equipment, at pagkalat ng impormasyon sa lahat ng residente lalo na sa mga lugar na kung saan madalas ang pagbaha.  Ipinaalala sa lahat na maging handa upang maging ligtas sa sakuna.

Completed: MDRRMO's Distribution of Donated Housing Materials 

Nakumpleto kamakailan ng MDRRMO ang distribusyon ng mga construction materials na dinonate ni Mayora Niña Jose-Quiambao sa mga sinalanta ng Bagyong Ulysses noong nakaraang Nobyembre. Ang mga materyales ay kinabibilangan ng 2,000 piraso ng yero at mga construction materials upang makabuo ng isang bahay na magsisilbing evacuation area sa Brgy. Paragos para sa anim na pamilya sakaling magkaroon ng baha. May 573 na pamilya ang naging benepisyaryo ng donasyon ni Ma'am Niña na nagkakahalaga ng P548, 849.

MDRRMO, Nakiisa sa 2Q NSED

Noong June 10, sa alas nuwebe ng umaga, ginanap ang 2nd Quarter Online Nationwide Simultaneous Earthquake Drill (ONSED). Patuloy ang pakikiisa ng MDRRMO sa ONSED at pagmomonitor sa lahat ng mga pribado at pampublikong eskwelahan, 77 na barangay, at ang LGU-Bayambang na pawang nakibahagi sa kaganapang ito. 

MDRRMO, Nagkabit ng Hazard Signages 

Umpisa na panahon ng tag-ulan ngayong buwan ng Hunyo hanggang Nobyembre. Kaya’t bilang preparasyon, nagsagawa ng assessment sa 43 na bahaing barangay ang MDRRMO Operation and Early Warning team sa pangunguna ni Ms. Genevieve Benebe. Ito ay upang masiguro na maayos ang mga hazard signages sa mga naturang barangay.

2nd Quarter Monitoring ng Early Warning Bell, Isinagawa

Kasabay ng paghahanda sa tag-ulan, muling nagsagawa ng monitoring ang MDRRMO sa mga ipinamahaging early warning bells noong Abril. Mahalagang bawat barangay ay maging handa upang maging ligtas sa sakuna. 

AWARDS & RECOGNITION

Dr. Vallo, Pangasinan Medical Society Community Service Awardee

Noong June 27, binigyang parangal ng Pangasinan Medical Society si Municipal Health Officer, Dra. Paz Vallo, sa kategorya ng Community Service, sa idinaos na awarding ceremony ng samahan sa Alaminos Convention Center, Alaminos City, Pangasinan. 

SDO1, Nagpasalamat kay Mayor CTQ

Sa pagpupulong ng Local School Board sa Niñas Cafe, kinilala ng Department of Education Region I Schools Division Office I Pangasinan ang naging pagsuporta ni Mayor Cezar Quiambao at ng kanyang Kasama Kita sa Barangay Foundation sa kanilang naging Learning Continuity Plan for Basic Education in SDO 1 Pangasinan for the School Year 2021-2021. Nauna nang iginawad ang naturang pagkilala noong ika-11 ng Hunyo sa ginanap na Division Partnerships Program ng SDO 1 Pangasinan sa Lingayen, Pangasinan.

LGU Awards 2021

LGU-Bayambang 2021 Awards

Rural Health Unit 1 and 2, Certificate of Achievement and Certificate of Performance after completing the 2020 Cycle Program: July 2020 to June 2021 National External Quality Assessment Scheme in Clinical Chemistry

100% Functionality rating in ADAC Awards by DILG for 2019

100% Functionality rating in ADAC Awards by DILG for 2020

Mayor Cezar T. Quiambao, recognized by Department of Education Region I Schools Division Office I Pangasinan for supporting their Learning Continuity Plan for Basic Education for the School Year 2021-2021, Division Partnerships Program of SDO 1 Pangasinan in Lingayen, Pangasinan

LGU-Bayambang, #1 in Government Efficiency, #3 in Infrastructure, #3 in Resiliency, and #4 in the Overall Competitiveness for the 1st and 2nd Class Municipalities in the Cities and Municipalities Competitiveness Index (CMCI) Survey, given by the Department of Trade and Industry and the Department of Interior and Local Government-Region I, January 18, 2021, San Fernando City, La Union, LGU-Bayambang

Bayambang ESWMO and Bayambang MRF, Recognized at 5th Region 1 Ecological Solid Waste Management Summit and Recognition, for the approval of Bayambang's 10-Year Solid Waste Management Plan and the "outstanding practices in recycling activity" of Materials Recovery Facility in Brgy. Telbang, in accordance with the Ecological Solid Waste Management Act, June 22, 2021

Mayor Cezar T. Quiambao, One of 75 Most Outstanding Alumni of the the University of the East

Mayor Cezar T. Quiambao, recipient of \Honorary Local Chief Executive of the Year (2021) Award -- formerly the Most Outstanding Mayor Award -- by the international award-giving body Superbrands


Bayambang Municipal Health Officer, Dr. Paz Vallo, recipient of 2020 Community Service Award given by the Pangasinan Medical Society on June 27, 2021 at the Alaminos Convention Center, Alaminos City, Pangasinan

RHUs, recognized by Rotary Club of Bayambang as COVID Heroes

Bayambang Municipal Nutrition Council, Third Most Outstanding MNC in Pangasinan for 2019

Bayambang Top Performing MNAO in Pangasinan for 2019

Marcelina Macaraeg of Brgy. Bacnono, Top Barangay Nutrition Worker (BNS) in Pangasinan in 2019, given by Pangasinan Provincial Health Office

Bayambang Municipal Nutrition Action Officer Venus Bueno, Top Municipal Nutiriton Action Officer of Pangasinan in 2019, given by Pangasinan Provincial Health Office
Bayambang MDRRM Officer Genevieve U. Benebe commended for performance and leadership as MDRRM Officer, given by Regional Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council 1 - Office of Civil Defense Regional Office 1, 2021

Bayambang MDRRM Council, rated “Fully Compliant” per Sections 1 and 12 of Republic Act 10121 (Philippine Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Act of 2010) by the 2021 Regional Assessment of Local Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Councils and Offices (LDRRMCOs) in the Province of Pangasinan, December 16, 2021; award equivalent to the Gawad Kalasag Award 2021   

MSWDO Bayambang, recipient of Tatag Lions Award in celebration of World Social Work Day, March 16, 2021, given by Philippine Association of Social Workers


MSWDO-Bayambang, Plaque of Appreciation from Pangasinan Provincial Government, in recognition of social work rendered in time of COVID-19 pandemic


Bayambang Municipal Anti-Drug Abuse Council, 2020 ADAC Special Awardee, September 6, 2021, for being consistently drug-cleared from 2017 to 2018, given by DILG, Dangerous Drugs Board, and Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency

LGU- Bayambang, DILG Good Financial Housekeeping Official Passer for 2019

LGU-Bayambang Municipal Anti-Drug Abuse Council (MADAC), 100% Passer in ADAC Awards for 2019, given by DILG, Dangerous Drugs Board, and Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency

LGU-Bayambang Municipal Anti-Drug Abuse Council (MADAC), 100% Passer in ADAC Awards for 2020, given by DILG, Dangerous Drugs Board, and Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency

Public Employment Services Office (PESO)-Bayambang, Special Citation for "timely and complete submission of PESO Statistical and Performance Reporting System Reports for CY 2021," by Department of Labor and Employment Regional Office I, Clark City, Pampanga, January 7, 2022

LGU-Bayambang, commended by DSWD RFO1 for its successful implementation of its nationwide Social Amelioration Program

LGU-Bayambang, Passer in Good Financial Housekeeping Audit as of November 5, 2021, DILG

ESWMO-Bayambang, Recognized for the approval of 10-year Solid Waste Management Plan, 6th Ecological Solid Waste Management Summit, DENR-Environmental Management Bureau Region I, Kabaleyan Cove Resort, San Carlos City, Pangasinan, January 26, 2022

ESWMO-Bayambang, Model in Implementation of Waste Diversion Activities, 6th Ecological Solid Waste Management Summit, DENR-Environmental Management Bureau Region I, Kabaleyan Cove Resort, San Carlos City, Pangasinan, January 26, 2022

LGU-Bayambang, Top 16 Nationwide in Resiliency Pillar for 1st and 2nd Class Municipalities, 2021 Cities and Municipalities Competitiveness Index (CMCI) Survey ng Department of Trade and Industry, San Fernando City, La Union, February 8, 2022

The ubiquitous mangga

Bayambang may not have developed a mango festival of some sort, but mango nonetheless figures prominently in the local culture because the town is dotted with mango trees almost everywhere one looks, even entire orchards of them, often called Kamanggaan.
 

In fact, Bayambang used to have a lucrative mango industry, with growers exporting this tropical fruit to Japan. There are also a few local makers of tiklis basket that still survive these days -- these bamboo baskets are where harvested mangoes bound for public markets are often contained in transit. Unfortunately, issues with pesticide use and infestation have dampened local mango production.
 

The most popular variety cultivated here belongs to the world’s sweetest variety, the carabao mango. One can’t possibly improve upon something perfect like the carabao mango, and locals are right to prefer to consume it fresh while in season, often to end a meal.
 

The only processed product attempted locally is mango vinegar, and it has yet to catch on in popularity. Pickled mango (burong mangga) is also a logical favorite for a town that loves to make buro.

The delicious, tangy fruit is also a favorite nowadays as ingredient in the popular refrigerator cake, mango graham float, and mango graham shake.
 

Green (unripe) mango is traditionally made into fruit shake, or chopped into a crunchy relish -- dipped in bagoong as is, or steeped in water and salt, or as part of a salad together with tomatoes, onion, and shrimp paste. It is also grated then mixed raw with mackerel sardines to make bar chow (pulutan).
 

Locals traditionally eat mango not just in different forms, but also in different varieties.

Apart from carabao mango, there is the pico variety, which is also sweet but longer in size, with a pointed tip.

The so-called Indian mango comes in two kinds, with one variety being more crunchy when unripe. These are popular as snacks or blended as green mango shake. 

Apple mango is less popular because it is considered by many as "taway sabon" (tastes like soap) when ripe, but it has a distinct flavor.

The lesser known Hawaiian variety has its own flavor as well and is best eaten when already at a deep yellow yet still crunchy stage, for by then it resembles perfectly ripe sarguelas (siniguelas).

Pao is the local term for the paho mango.

Supsupin or byuko is also grown and eaten here. 

Biyakin is a term used for that stage of mango when it can be easily cracked using the hands.

Mango leaves are used to make pito-pito herbal tea.

The shady branches of the mango tree are, of course, a favorite refuge of birds hunting for food and nesting site as well as neighborhood children looking for fun.

Galaw tan Galaw-Galaw: A Dictionary of Traditional Pangasinan Games and Toys

Galaw tan Galaw-Galaw: A Dictionary of Traditional Pangasinan Games and Toys

Curiously, the word galaw in the Pangasinan language has four different meanings: game or sport, toy, movement, and joke. 

Wala la'y galaw natan? (Is there a game going on right now?/Is there a game about to go on?)

Anto ta'y galaw-galaw mo? (What is that toy you have?)

Galaw ki met kari. (Will you please get moving?)

Sika met, mangagalaw ak labat! (I was only kidding you!)

It could be that these four things mean roughly the same, because when one is playing, it indeed means one is having fun with playthings and one can't help but get moving.

Anyway, in modern times, the word game has become closely connected with the new term, gaming, which has become a noun that has taken on a new meaning. It refers to games based on computer apps or applications, which now come in profusion since the time of Tetris, Pacman, and Super Mario. These computer games have engrossed teens and even adults, as they sit for hours in front of the screen with nary a muscle flexed.

Games today also strictly refer to the ball games and other big-ticket games of the school intramurals or palaro and the like, which is locally called liga or paliga. This inevitably means basketball and volleyball, being the most preferred, although the return of soccer and baseball looks promising. These games are, of course, always referred to as proper 'sports,' and their players 'athletes,' and these have evolved into not just as a recreational pursuit but also as an entire career.

Foreign-born sports that are also martial arts have also become popular of late: karate, taekwondo, judo.

There was a time when gaming had quite a different sense. In the olden days, children grew up being exposed to a rich gaming tradition, whether indigenous or otherwise, that an entire glossary of toys and games can be constructed from memory.

Considering how Filipinos absorb other influences like a sponge, certain games may have been known the world over, and these got deeply embedded in several generations' collective memory that they have been ‘nativized’ as well, so these may be considered as part of local tradition. But the variety of native games (and toys) can be easily gleaned from the terminology, and the list is quite impressive: there is a game invented for different contexts.

Whether solitary or in a group big or small, board games or card games, indoor games or street games, parlor games or fiesta favorites, boys’ games or girls’ games, having fun with these supposed life distractions is always an indelible part of local youngsters' life and that of the rest of the community.  

The big difference is that traditional games encourage a lot of movement, demand physical agility and coordination, and establish camaraderie among peers while enriching the local culture by giving generations of children a host of beautiful memories of fun and physical-mental exercise to look back on as adults.

These are those games, toys, and gaming elements in alphabetical order.

***

Abong-abong (bahay-bahayan in Tagalog or playing house in English) is a common game in which kids get to role play a typical family setting. It can be played outdoors or indoors using any objects around the house or yard. Part of abong-abongan is luto-lutuan, or the simulation of cooking the family meal, particularly among the girls, in which miniature clay pots, ovens, plates, etc. are used. Lako-lakuan is also often resorted to, where players pretend to be market vendors selling assorted goods.

Agawan ng buko is a fiesta-time race to snatch a lone unpeeled buko or young coconut fruit, which is slathered with oil to make the catching more difficult for the players.  

Arnis is more of a martial art than game. It involves "swinging and twirling motions, as well as striking, thrusting, and parrying techniques for defense and attack," and uses rattan canes.

Flying kite or baga-baga is popular when the weather condition permits it. There are two types of baga-baga: sapi-sapi and binakyong. Binakyong is a long-tailed type of baga-baga that uses coconut leaf sticks as support to the diamond-shaped body. The sapi-sapi is the simplest sort of kite using just the sting and a piece of square or rectangular paper that is folded by 1 inch on both ends.

Baldo is jumping rope, using a rope or an improvised rope, i.e., using rubber bands linked together. The rope is swung forward toward a line, then away by the turners. The first player must run under the rope and back without reaching or allowing the rope to contact him, whereas the second person in line joins in after one pass, and both players sprint under the rope. After that, three runners join forces, and so on.

Baraha or card games are a dime a dozen: paquito, 41, lucky 9, sulsuldong, solitario and bakes-bakes are just some of the games that can be done with the baraha or playing cards. Locals young and old love to play these games as pastime especially during wakes. Basically, the cards are gathered into a deck and are randomly rearranged using the hand prior to the cards being dispersed to the players. The quantity of players and cards given to a player differs relying upon the guidelines of each game.

Bat-an is similar to baseball using tennis ball to make it to the first base then home base, but the bat used is one's own arm.

Bato bato pik or Jack en Poy is a preliminary game of elimination, to determine who is taya or “it” through matching finger snaps (rock, paper, scissors).  The one who doesn’t match the initial “it’s” finger snaps is the game’s “it.”

Bawet is trumpo or top, also Patpatlek? Landungan na bawet or pakulan na bawet is an outdoor game using tops. The top is often made of hard wood with a half-sphere on top and a conical section at the bottom end, in which an iron nail is attached. It is spun by winding a length of string around the body, and launching it so that it lands spinning on its point. If the string is attached to a stick the rotation can be maintained by whipping the side of the body. Players aim to hit a rival top and topple it from its position -- often outside a circle. 

Bending is a game in which a rubber slipper is the patok (general term for the plaything used to win the game). One dips his slipper to the opponent’s slipper by hanging his slipper in one ear, then letting the slipper fall from the ear until it hits the opponent’s slipper.

Bong-bong (boga in Tagalog) is the native term for bamboo cannon, which is used as makeshift explosive to mark New Year's Eve. 

Bontayog and butsi are the local terms for cara y cruz or heads and tails guessing game using sentimos coins. It is also called kara korus or kuros kuros. 

Bubuka ang bulalak is a dance/game among girls that is executed to the tune of this song: “Bubuka ang bulaklak, sasara ang bulaklak. Dadaan ang reyna, sasayaw siya. Boom-tiyaya-boom-tiyaya-boom-ye-ye.” A circle is formed by joining hands, then a reyna or queen enters the circle and stands in the middle, then covers her eyes with her hands while pointing her finger as she turns around. The girl that her finger randomly points at as the song is finished is the next reyna.

Chinese garter is a skipping or hopping game that need flexibility, balance, and coordination, particularly among young ladies. The players must jump over a garter around a few yards in length in a variety of techniques as the garter is placed by two stationary players at gradually increasing heights.

Dama is a variety of the checkers board game which can be played almost anywhere – all the two players need are a few bottlecaps (tansan) and a marker. Chinese dama is an even more simplified dama using only four equal-size squares. The objective is to race all of one's pieces over the square board into home base using single-step moves or moves that jump over other pieces.

Dineyeng is a contest of hitting square-shaped samon grass pile placed at a distance in the field after a major grass-cutting session. When a player hits an opponent's grass pile, he wins that pile.  

Diola camatis is the local term for luksong baka, a popular game in which players leap over another player known as the “baka” or "cow" and all players’ goal is to leap over the cow without collapsing or hitting him. Anyone who comes into contact with the cow or falls over becomes the new cow and until all the players have jumped over the "baka," then the game is over.

Dr. Quack Quack is a popular game in which one person is chosen as Dr. Quack Quack either by 'jack en poy,' "bato, bato, pik," or some other manner. After the ‘doctor’ is picked, he or she turns around and looks away from the rest of players as they join their arms and get them tangled in wild ways by stooping and stepping over each other without disengaging their hands. Dr. Quack Quack then faces them back and carefully untangle each knot.

Dunkin Donut is played by a few players seated in a circle, with their hands on the table closed into fists, with the thumb on top. Everyone sings "Dunkin donut, ting-a-li-aling poknat" while the leader lifts his first and bumps all the other fists on top with every syllable sung. After the song is finished, the leader lifts up one thumb and inserts that thumb to the underside of the fist of the person upon which the song finishes. This is repeated until there are no longer fists left to insert thumbs to. When each free fist has held another fist, everyone sings the song again as they move their connected fists together in a circular motion. After the song is sung, each one removes his hand. No one moves, and the first one who moves loses. The punishment is usually pitik bulag. 

Eating contests such as onion-eating contest may also be resorted to in fiestas. In galletas or polvoron eating contest, five or more players are given the same number of galletas (a powdery cookie) or polvoron. The player who can finish eating all the galletas or polvoron and blow a long whistle wins the game.

Erelan or inerel is habulan or chasing game, which is played at any time of day or night in a wide open space. Requiring energy and flexibility, it is often composed of two teams. This game has evolved into a few variations. Inerel, in general, requires only one it throughout the game. In the beinte-uno version, however, the 21st person in the count to determine the it becomes the it, and anyone who is tagged gets to be an additional it.Erela'y sali ed tagey na kakyewan is playing catch up in a tree using one’s legs.

Erelan na belek or agawan ng biik (pigpen wrestling, pigpen chase, or catch the piglet) is an exciting game to watch during fiesta. Participants chase and capture a small pig that has been let loose in a restricted area. The winner is the contestant who successfully captures the pig, and the prize is the pig itself.

Follow the Leader is like luksong baka. The leader tries to negotiate the obstacle by whatever way (jump, back dive, tumbling, etc.) and the next ones follow. The player who fails to follow the leader gets to be the next baka (cow). 

Garing, garing-garing, or titiris are the local terms for doll.

Holen or jolens is derived from the phrase "hole in," and the game involves players holding the glass ball called holen in their hands and throwing it to knock the other players' ball out of the playing area.

Hula hoop involves swinging plastic hoops in one’s waist and counting the number of turns until the player can no longer bear it. The player with the most number of turns emerges as the winner.

Inabong is a fun tagging/catching game between two teams with equal number of members and have respective bases in opposite directions in a wide open field. Tagged opponents are brought to the home base as prisoners, and are only released if they are tagged back by fellow team members. Impugod is the term used by Ilocanos for inabong.

Inamot or amutan is hide-and-seek. Two players conceal themselves in a set environment, to be found by one or more searchers. The game is played by one chosen player counting to a predetermined number with eyes closed while the other players hide. Inamot abong is inamot that is played strictly inside a house. As soon as the "it" finishes saying, "Pagbilang ko ng sampu nakatago na kayo. Isa, dalawa, tatlo, ... sampu!", everyone else must be out of sight and hiding somewhere or he will be caught and be the next "it." However, there is still a way out: if the one caught can run faster toward the home base than the "it," then the "it" stays as the "it." In Bang-sak, the "it" (whether one person or a team) shouts "Bang!" whoever he or she gets to tag, and the tagged player becomes the next "it," unless he/she gets to tag the "it" first. The opponent team, on the other hand, shouts "Sak!" whenever he/she tags the "it," but when the "it " tags him/her first, the latter is out from the game.

Inamot panis is a game using coconut leaf sticks buried in a little square or circular patch of sandy soil, and the aim is for the other player attempt to find it by drawing a small circle on the position being guessed. A longer stick is used to fish the buried stick. The mechanics is quite more complex than it sounds. If the guess is right, the other player takes turn in finding a new buried stick. Each player need to be inventive in fooling the other so it keeps on missing the buried stick.

Inerel gulis is a variation of the catch-me-if-you-can game. The difference is the movement is limited to a long continuous line made on the ground. 

Itpereket is a game played by a group seated in a circle around a tin can. The following is then recited -- “Itpereket, ubing battit, uray la makapugpugtit” -- and the player upon which the chant is finished should flip the tin can by gripping the top rim. If the can falls standing up, the player stays in the game, but if the can falls on its side, the player is out.

Jackstones is the use of a little bouncing rubber ball and a set of jacks. While the ball is thrown into the air, a single stone or jack is picked up, and then the bouncing ball is caught and the step is repeated until the player with the highest number of stones wins the game. A foul is committed with every mistake in the catching and picking rule.

Jump the Spine (luksong tinik) is a girls' game that involves putting the hem of the dress or lifting the hem of the skirt or dress then sticking it in the underpants while running to the place where two persons sit on the ground and build the spine as follows: Two girls take turns putting their heel and toes on top of another, then their hands with open palms on top of another. If the player touches the hand or the feet, someone says, "Touch,' then the player is out of the game and next person gets to jump over the spine. This was a very common and most liked game of girls in the '50s-'60s.

Kadang-kadang (tiyakad in Tagalog) refers to the bamboo stilts game, where players mounted on bamboo poles race toward a finish line.

Kaling-kaling is a street game like samperwan but it uses a round line intersected in the middle with a straight line where the "it" tries to catch players running on the circular line.

Kalit is a variety of tatsing using bokel na maloko or cashew seeds (nuts).

Kati-abot uses a tin can placed in a burrow made on the ground. The aim of the opponent is to keep the can in the burrow by hitting it, while the “it” wants to release his tin can from the burrow so the opponent gets to be the next “it.”

Kinalitan is a team competition like inabong, but there are differences. There are two opposite home bases with a guard each. The "it" team starts the chasing game as the opponent team members run away from the home base, inviting to be chased after. Players who get tagged are "imprisoned" at the opponents' home base by sitting down in the corner instead of forming a line by linking both outstretched arms and wait to be tagged by teammates in order to be freed -- that is, if the rescuers can get past the guard. If the "it" catches and grips an opponent, he counts up to ten. If the caught opponent is able to run away, he is considered set free.

Kinirmat is like inerel gulis, in that when a player is left alone in a mud box of four squares, she will be tagged with the word “Pong!” or “Kirmat!” (literally, lightning).  While running along the entire length of the lines , the “it” tries to catch those inside the four boxes. For the player to avoid getting caught, he or she must have someone else to tug at him or her in case the “it” approaches them.

Kitkit (piko or hopscotch) is a simple game of hopping and skipping in which the player can plant one feet or both feet down on the ground at the same time depending on the box drawn on the ground. When the player comes to the conclusion box, the player turns around and drops back to the starting point. In kitkit, only one foot is used to hop or skip. Kitkit palda is a kind of kitkit in which the drawn boxes together form the semblance of a dress with a skirt. Kitkit has evolved into versions called kitkit aparador, in which the drawn figures used resemble a large cabinet.

Kuros-bukot is a combination of inamot (hide-and-seek) and inabong (playing catch, but with each team having a home base where members cannot be chased and get caught). There is a base, and the “it” is called anyani or ghost. The rest of the players may either hide or run around without stopping until the ghost is able to find or catch everyone.

Kuros-kuros is a game which is combination of inamot and erelan. The "it" can run after the players just about everywhere.

Langit, Lupa, Impiyerno (literally, heaven, earth and hell) is a chasing game in which players will not be tagged if they manage to lift themselves off the ground by whatever means. The “it” is chosen by reciting the following while the leader points around the players one by one with every syllable: “Langit, lupa, impiyerno. Saksak puso, tulo ang dugo. Patay, buhay, alis ka na diyan sa pwesto mo.” The last player unfortunate enough to find himself being pointed at the end of the song is the “it.”

Lastiko or rubber band games come in several varieties. The simplest game is a series of making various formations and fun shapes, starting from a cross, star, double star, "bahay ni Tarzan," and the culmination, the singsing (ring). Parukeyan na lastiko is a contest of who makes the longest rubber band chain. For other more advanced games using the rubber band, there is the pitik lastiko, sibok/sibukan/sibok goma/sibok lastiko, sultik, dampa, pustaan na papel na sigarilyo tan lastiko, and so on.

Limbo rock or limbo dance is a popular game in which the goal is “to pass advances beneath a moo bar without falling or dislodging the bar.”

London Bridge is Falling Down is a popular game in which children join hands in a circle while passing through an arch formed by the outstretched arms of two players while everybody is singing, “London Bridge is falling down, falling down, falling down. London Bridge is falling down, my fair lady.” After the song, the 'arch' is lowered and traps one of the players. ...

Luksong kabayo is usually played by children. It is accomplished by jumping over the person who is stooping without knocking him or her down.

Lumbaa'y dagian or dagian is a race involving a pair in which one is carried on one's back.

Marco Polo is a guessing game played inside a small room by a group whose members know one another. The “it” is blindfolded while the rest of the players move around. The “it” explores the room, catches one of the players, gropes the person for clues, and tries to guess who he or she is. If the guess is right, the person being held becomes the next “it”.

Monkey Annabel or monkey-monkey is an elimination game, and the one left last is tagged as the “monkey.” The players stand in a circle, and the leader recites the following while pointing a finger to each player per every syllable uttered: “Monkey monkey Annabel. How many monkey did you see? 2 is sprikitik in the blue black ship. Spell yes… Y-E-S, alis!”

Nanay, Tatay (Mother, Father) is a young children's game of choreographed clapping between two or more players accompanied by chanting, "Nanay, tatay/Gusto kong tinapay/Ate, kuya/Gusto kong kape./Lahat ng gusto ko ay susundin niyo./Ang magkamali ay pipingutin ko." This is followed by the chant, "1/1,2/1,2,3/1,2,3,4/..." and so on until the counting reaches "/1....10/," and the players may extend the game by reversing the count: "10/10,9/10,9,8/..." The player who makes a mistake in clapping receives the punishment of being pinched on the ear (as indicated in the chant) or any equivalent punishment. This game has varieties.

Pabitin is a party game in which young children attempt to reach out and snatch things (usually sweets, little toys, or coins) from a woven square of flat bamboo sticks (balag) placed high above their heads. This diversion is a frequent feature of children's birthday parties. The pabitin is hung from the ceiling then raised and brought down rapidly in succession, and the little children bounce to seize the hanging goodies.

Pagi is like patintero in that it is an outdoor game played using a line drawn on the ground. With a minimum of two players, the aim is to trick the opponent to either gets closer or moves away from the line. The opponent must get past all the lines to win the game. 

The old town plaza had an open park with two kinds of pakaruskusan or slides (concrete and tin), seesaws, and monkey bars.

Palo sebo is a traditional game that is usually played between boys during a fiesta or other important holidays or occasions. This game involves climbing a long, polished and standing bamboo pole greased with oil. Participants must race to climb it in order to reach a pennant or small flag or bag, which usually contains a reward. 

Palsuot is like a blowgun, but is different in that the mouth is not used to blow the pellet. Instead, there is another bamboo tube at the end that is attached to a stick that is used to push the pellets, often amaragat seeds or substitutes like wet paper balls. 

Paltik or palsot or baswit? means slingshot, which is used to hit wild birds.

Panag-gaway patit para manok tan para tilay is trap-making to catch wild birds and monitor lizards.

Panagkamarerwa is less of a game but more of a fun practice of gathering molten candles in the cemetery and around houses during All Saints' Day. These are collected by children into a ball and eventually mixed with petroleum gas to make floor wax. The fun part is the race to make the biggest wax ball.

Paputok is the term for the assortment of firecrackers (kwitis, fountain, etc.) lighted on New Year’s Eve.

Pataristis is a variation of samperwan, wherein the “it” or taya will go around trying to tag those who are inside the circle. The other players move within the circle.

Patpatlek is a "truth or consequence" type of game using a bottle turned on its side while the leader of the group chants, "Telek-telek, patpatlek say ituro to sikayoy untuwek!"

Pen and paper games were quite popular. There is this simple game in which two opponents draw a base at opposite directions from which they would launch their pens by turns, producing a line that approaches the opponent base. The next launching of lines is, of course, from the tip of the preceding line, and this is repeated until the opponent hits the other player's base. * VITAY is a local version of the Hangman game. There are two players, and the "it" is chosen via jack en poy. A player thinks up of a word that will fit in a series of empty boxes. The "it" tries to guess the word by asking if the word has a random letter in mind. Each wrong letter will merit a line in the VITAY, which has 11 lines. If the "it" fails to guess the word after all the lines of "VITAY" have been written down, he/she remains "it"; if he/she wins, it will be his/her turn to think of a new word. * F.L.A.M.E.S. is a game often played by pre-teens to supposedly predict one's sort of relationship with a target person. The acronym stands for "Friends, Lovers, Anger, Marriage, Engagement, Soulmates." The names of the two people being paired off are written down, then all the letters common to both names are crossed out. The number of letters unique to both is then counted, and the total is counted against the numbered letters of the FLAMES acronym until it reaches the final letter. The final letter is supposed to indicate the future relationship of the pair.

Penpen de sarapen is played by a few players seated in a circle, with their hands on the table and their fingers fully spread out. A leader spreads out just one hand because he will point at each finger one by one while everybody sings the song "Penpen de sarapen de kutsilyo de almasen, haw haw de carabao batuten. Ipit namimilipit, gintong pilak namumulaklak sa tabi ng dagat." The finger upon which the song stops should be hidden under the palm of the hand. The first player whose fingers are completely hidden from view will be the winner and earns the right to punish the rest of the players through pitik bulag. 

Pick up sticks is a game of carefully picking at a bundle of plastic sticks one stick at a time without moving any of the rest of the jumbled sticks. 

Pik-pac-bong is a speed game played during wakes. Each player has an assigned number, and there is a moderator who says, "Pic-pac-bong!" Someone mentions a random number, then the player with that number will echo the number. But if the number mentioned is not any of the assigned numbers, or the guessing player commits a mistake like mentioning a name instead of a number, he loses the game. The punishment is a choice between ‘truth’ or ‘consequence,’ or everyone draws on his face using charcoal. After the punishment is meted out, he will be the next one to say, "Pic-pac-bong."

Pitik bulag or pitik mata is a game of finger snaps and opening and closing of eyes to guess how many fingers of one’s opponent are sticking out. A player loses when his finger does not match the “it,” and the loser becomes the next “it.” It is also often used as punishment for those losing in any game.

Pongkit is an indoor game of pebbles in which the player gets a handful of pebbles, throw these up and catch them at the back of his palm, then hit each pebble to the other on the floor. The player collects the pebbles he has hit, and if he misses, the playmate takes turn and does the same thing. When all the pebbles are hit, the players count their winnings. Depending on their agreement, usually through pitikan (knuckle-hitting with finger snaps), the loser is punished.

Pugso or sulpit means blowgun using hollow stems or stalks of papaya leaves, bamboo, or rice, with bugayong or monggo seeds as pellets, or balls of moistened paper. Salbatana also means blowgun.

Pukpok palayok is a race between two or more blindfolded players to see who will first hit his clay pot hung at a distance. The noisy crowd shouts the clues to the players, to hilarious effect. This is similar to the Mexican piñata, and it may be a localized version of it. 

Samperwan, samperoan,or limbo-limbo (patintero) is often played under the moonlight by two teams. A wide segmented rectangle is made on the ground -- often using just water to mark the lines, which are guarded by the “it” team. There are two teams, and the aim is for one team to cross the lines from one side to the other without getting tagged by the guards. Pataristis is a variation of samperwan, wherein the “it” or taya will go around trying to tag those who are inside the circle. The other players move within the circle.

Sanggol braso is arm wrestling, while sanggol pueg is knee wrestling. Tolsi is finger-wrestling.

Sawsaw suka is a game for babies. An adult opens his palm like a bowl and invites the tot to dip her forefinger on the bowl while reciting, “Sawsaw suka, mahuli taya,” and then he snaps shut his palm to catch her forefinger. If the baby’s finger is caught, she becomes the next “it.”

Sepak takraw (kick volleyball) is a sport native to Southeast Asia which differs from the similar sport of foot volley for its use of a woven rattan ball and only allowing players to use their feet, knee, and head to touch and kick the ball.

7-Up is a guessing game in which the “it” stands up and turns his back on a group of guessers as the latter walk, then stop, then walk, and so on, toward him until someone is able to tap him. When he faces them and says “1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7-Up!” the approaching players should freeze. If caught moving, the player gets to be the next “it.” If a guesser manages to touch the “it,” she should run away or the “it” will catch her and be the next “it.” To confuse the guessers, the “it” may also say, “Sarsi” or some other softdrink brand, and depending on the pre-set rule, the guessers might shake their bod instead of freezing, and the guessing game continues until a player who commits a mistake is caught and gets to be the next “it.”

Turning the hand’s shadow into various forms of animals (dove, dog, rabbit, etc.) is also a local pastime –  obviously a night-time activity.

Shatong, siyatong, or bati cobra is a stick game in which a furrow is made on the ground where a little wood is positioned so it sticks out a bit. The first team player hits the small stick with a longer stick so the short stick is thrust up in the air, and then hits it again with a forward thrust above the heads of evenly spread out players from the opponent team. If anyone from the opponent team catches the short stick, the “it” and his whole team loses. If the short stick does not get caught and lands somewhere, the “it” runs to where the short stick fell accompanied by opponents. The player then shouts “Shaaaatooooooong” from the landing point up to the furrow, making sure he does not run out of breath, or else no point is counted. Completing the shouting part ensures a winning point with the ensuing measurement of the distance traveled using the longer stick. Another part of the mechanics is the use of the shorter stick as measuring stick for a different scenario.

"Singsing ibulos ta ka. Pedro anap mo la" is a game wherein an object (say, a ring) is passed around within a circle of mourners while singing. It is played by young men and women during wakes. The person caught with the object at the time the song finishes is punished by being made to choose between "truth" or "consequence."

Sipa (bukoy in Pangasinan) is a native kicking game in which the player uses a sipa, usually made of a washer tied with plastic straws or its equivalent. This is tossed in the air and kicked with the right (among boys) or left (among girls) side of the feet and repeatedly kicked until it falls on the ground, and that is the time one loses one’s turn.

Sungka is a game common to many Asian cultures. It is played with a wooden board with seven smaller dips or holes on each side, and two bigger holes on either side, and shells or stones. The rule is to collect more shells than your opponent.

Tatsing, from "touching," is an outdoors game in which a square is drawn on the ground, then coins, often 25 centavos, are placed inside by different players for betting. The players take turns hitting the coins inside with another coin. When a coin is hit and gets thrown outside the box, the hitting player wins that coin. The hitting goes on until all the coins are won. In place of coins, tansan or tin bottle caps are used after being honed like coins. Tatsing has variations, like the tatsing na kahay sigarilyo, which uses discarded cigarette packs. Different brands of cigarette packs have different values.  Marlboro and Philip command higher value. One bunch of Marlboro packs equals 10 Newport or Champion packs, and so on.

Teks or tex is a game of flipping and betting on little message cards with amusing cartoons with caption or text – with stacks of spare teks as bet. The game is played by flipping at least three cards in the air using the thumb and pointer finger, with each card coming from a player. The cards then land on the ground, and the card that faces a different direction wins the round.

Telepono-telepono is a pair of tin can telephone attached by a string or wire and used as play telephone. 

Thread the Needle or paplesa'y panagdeyeng na dagum is a game that requires two persons or a couple, in which one holds a needle while the other holds a cotton thread. The fastest couple who can insert the cotton thread into the needle's hole wins the game. 

Tinopak tsinelas or tupak tsinelas involves lining up one of each player’s slippers at a distance and hitting the opponent’s slippers with the other piece so they are pushed or thrown upon the line.

Touch the Color is a game in which the "it" directs all players to find any object of the color he or she chooses and then catches anyone who is unable to find such a colored object, at which point the loser becomes the next "it."

Touching Ball is played by teams on opposite sides, wherein two players serve as hitters, and one player is in the middle as the "it." One side throws the ball at the opposite side and tries to hit the one in the middle (the "it") while the person on the other side tries to catch the ball that is thrown. The "it" runs from side to side to avoid being hit. If the "it" is hit, then the next person in the team takes his turn as the "it." This was one of the most common and most liked games in the '50s-'60s.  

Tug of war is, of course, a game that aims to show which team is collectively stronger through the use of a long rope by which the opponents tug at each other at the same time.

Tumba lata (tumbang preso, presohan) is a popular street game involving three or more players. Each player is given a patok (pamato), which is a big throwaway item (could be slippers or a shoe). Six to 8 meters from the throwing line, a semi-flattened empty tin or plastic container (the size of an 8 or 12 oz. tin) is set upright. As the inmate, a player is chosen (usually through Jack en Poy). The prisoner will keep an eye on the void. The other players stand at the throwing line. They take turns throwing their patok at the empty tin, trying to knock it down. As soon as the can is knocked down, the prisoner must put back the tin in upright position before he can tag any of the players attempting to recover their patok. If the patok becomes too close to the tin in an upright position, so that the prisoner can step on both with one foot, the owner of the patok becomes the new "prisoner." The prisoner can also tag the players while recovering their patok outside the throwing line. After each throw, a player must recover his patok. Should he be tagged by the prisoner before he reaches the throwing line, he becomes the prisoner in the next game.

Locally, a chant may be whispered before a player hits the can: "Kuros bukot, agka natatakot." (Roughly, "Have no fear.")

Tupa or tupaan is a Mayflower festival game of throwing a husked coconut against another husked coconut. The coconut that does not break is the winning coconut. This game has reportedly evolved into a pustaan or betting game.

Yoyo-playing was a fad for a time, but it has always been part of the local tradition.

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In the days when children loved basking under the sun and bathing in the rain with no care in the world, they had reason to explore their innate creativity and get to convert trash into treasure or make use of anything around them, including plant parts and insects, as playthings. 

Kotse-kotse or toy cars are made using a flat sardine can or plastic bottle, with the wheels often made of broken old slippers. Karkariton or toy carts may also be made using bamboo or wood.

Paper boat, paper plane, paper batiwag (propeller), and paper flower are local origami of sorts using scraps of paper to create these fun objects. Lumbaa'y baloto or paper boat race is usually played during flood or when it has subsided. Kids also folded paper into not just toy boat, airplane or jet plane, but also into other forms such as container/box, ball, flower, gun, hat, fan, envelope, star, bat, etc. A handkerchief was also folded to form a banana with peels dangling and then a baby lying on a hammock. This practice brought simple joy and cheap, clean fun.

Paltugan (baril-barilan) is using palpaltog or play guns, particularly a wooden gun that makes a rattling sound. In place of a store-bought gun, any wooden stick may be used as improvised guns in a make-believe war.

Banbantolin race, lumbay bantolin, usila'y dalig, or dalig-dalig is very common game among young boys. It is patterned after the Tour of Luzon cycling race during the 70s. It is a race on how fast participants can run while rolling a used motorcycle tire. The first racer who reaches the finish line wins the race. 

Gumamela flowers are traditionally pounded and mixed with water to make bubbles with the help of leaf stalks as improvised stemmed ring.

The girls, in particular, accessorize by using cassava (kamoteng kahoy) leaves together with its red leaf stalk and turn them into necklace or bracelet and even clip for their hair.

The boys pretend to smoke cigarettes using old cassava stems as sitsigarilyo, with the soft middle tissue pushed out.

Sanggol-sanggol is played using the hooked petioles of acacia leaves, which are made to cross and wrestle against each other. The owner of the stronger hook, of course, emerges as the winner.

There is the use of putok or putok-putok, the dried pods of a common weed, the violet-flowering hairy wild petunia (Ruellia tuberosa), to play popping tricks by putting them on water or using one's saliva.

Panag-gigang or genggeng is spider fighting or wrestling, which groups of grownup boys love. Spiders spinning webs in surrounding vegetation are collected and kept in matchboxes and fed insects. On the day of the fight, a pair of spiders are placed together on a stick and made to duel until one of them dies from a bite or is kicked out of the stick.

Panagsibaweng is catching sibaweng (salagubang, a common brown beetle), tying it to a thread and whirling it around, so the poor insect is forced to fly and make a soft buzzing sound. The same is done with another beetle, the green salaginto.

Baboy-babuyan, or catching antlions in their own dust trap using one's hair, was also a common pastime. One sings "sener-sener, sener-sener" until the antlion emerges from its hiding place.

Speaking of dust, kids of yesteryears would make mounds of dust, create a hollow on the top using their elbow or knee, urinate on the crater, and leave it until it hardens. Then a contest would ensue on who gets to have the biggest bowl of mud.

Kids also caught dragonflies, cicadas, and crickets and played with them.

***

Footnotes: 

1. In local games, impiang is a way of choosing the “it” like bato bato pik. The would-be players place their hand on top of the others’, then toss them at the same time and bring them down with either the palm facing up or facing down. The one whose palm faces a direction different from the rest becomes the “it.” Impiang is accompanied by the expression, “Maibaaaaa... taya!” (The one who is different shall be "it.")

2. Amamayo is another term for plaything. It also means to take care of something.

3. Other most popular parlor games during Christmas parties and the like include Bring Me, My Mother Goes to Market/Mary Goes to Town, Trip to Jerusalem, and Stop Dance.

4. Note that other board games such as chess, Scrabble, Boggle, Monopoly, Games of the Generals, Snakes and Ladders, Tic Tac Toe, and Backgammon have also become popular starting in the postwar/American period (except for the chess, which used to be called by its Spanish name, ahedres).

5. Games that are out-and-out gambling games have always been popular as well. Examples are mahjong and bingo, but these are excluded from the list for being out of scope.

Contributors: Jojo Malicdem, Oscar Ora, Alicia de Guzman (pongkit), Resty Odon, Clarita F. Tagab (diola camatis), Joey Ferrer (salbatana), Josephine Austria (pic-pac-bong, tupaan), Dan Sagun (pic-pac-bong), Tessie Reyes, Joseph Quinto, Macario Garcia (Follow the Leader, Marco Polo, Langit Lupa Impiyerno, kitkit aparador, kinalitan, itpereket, impiang, Penpen de Sarapen, Dunkin Donut, impugod, pagi), Januario Cuchapin, Joel Camacho, Boyette Santillan Poserio, Marciano J. Flores, Napoleon Junio, Raymund Marcos, Perfecto Beltran, Jeremy Cabatbat, Lorenzo Cyr Bancolita, Andrea F. Umoypa, Ludovico Aquino Mejia Jr., Elmina Paras, Waldy F. Canalita, Gilda Ferrer Capitly, Marivic Pornea, Khornjun Doloque, Roger Bato, Maynard Lalas, Raul J. Ramos, Zel Apol, Maria Luzviminda Cayabyab, Yhammel CM MC, Carmelo Casingal Mabutas, Bernabe Mercado, Lumen Gabertan-Celemin, and the rest of the members of Bayambang Culture Mapping Project who reacted positively to and thus validated the contributions.

Original mappers of panagsibaweng and panag-gigang: Christopher C. Bancolita, Mariel C. Fabrigas, Bayambang National High School, Senior High School; Adviser: Mr. Christopher  Q. Gozum